WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — "I had to deal with things no child should’ve gone through," said Matthew Erret, reflecting on the medical problems a condition brought on by E.Coli gave him at the tender age of two.
Errett says he got it at a daycare twenty-three years ago. He's been living with Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome ever since.
"My life has been limited to a certain degree, because of the transplant that has led me to other problems," said Errett. He got his first kidney transplant at age two, but sadly, not all transplants last forever. Twenty-three years later, he needed another. His search began in 2018.
"At one point one of our good friends, Jim Wolf, he was actually able to donate a transplant to me, but the last point going through the testing, he actually ended up not being able to be a donor," said Errett.
Disappointed, the search and wait continued, until he got a phone call in August 2019. "I get a phone call from Baptist hospital," said Errett.
"She called the house and told me specifically that she has a transplant lined up for me, and she also told me my donor happens to be someone I know and surprisingly it was Dr. Driscoll my dentist."
"The previous February, when Matthew was in to get an exam and a cleaning, his dad said, 'Yeah, Matthew is getting ready to go back on dialysis.' I said, 'Just out of curiosity, what type of blood type is he?' Well he’s an A. I’m an A," said Dr. Daniel Driscoll.
Driscoll says he initially wanted to donate to his father, who was going through dialysis, but he wasn't the right match.
"I wanted to give a kidney to somebody, after seeing a loved one on dialysis -it's not a real pleasant experience," said Driscoll.
Now they're forever bonded, a dentist and his patient.
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