Liver Recipient

Lamar Bradley

Four-year-old Lamar Bradley was laying in a hospital dying from an inflamed liver. No one saw it coming. Just weeks before he had been a healthy child, playing outdoors with his friends. Now his only hope for survival was a liver transplant.

Nearby, 12-year-old LaKendra Hill had been in a car accident. Doctors did everything they could to save her, but she died. Her mom sat beside her bed and thought about LaKendra's willingness to help others. She decided to donate LaKendra’s organs.

Since Lamar was so sick and had the same blood type as LaKendra, he was at the top of the waiting list for her donated liver. Now he would get his second chance at life.

Lamar's mom was thankful when she heard that there was a liver for her son, but she was also concerned for the family who had lost their child. Lamar's transplant was successful, and two weeks later he left the hospital. Soon he was back to being a regular kid, hard charging and playing T-ball with his friends.

Today at 13, Lamar likes to draw and is a good student. He and his mom have met and become friends with LaKendra's parents. "If I had not made the choice to donate, I don’t think I would have healed," says LaKendra's mom.

"It makes the pain easier to bear, knowing that LaKendra made a difference in someone else's life."

Reference and Publication Information

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The content on this page was originally created on June 1, 2006 by the United Network for Organ Sharing and last modified on June 1, 2006.

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