“It was like a little pea pod,” she said.
The family traveled from Cowlitz County to the University of Washington Medical Center in Seattle for assessment, Holde said. In 1985, when Holde was 29, doctors suggested a transplant. Holde-White, then 20, was a nearly 100% kidney match. The decision to donate was easy, she said.
“In our family, we are all best friends,” Holde-White said. “I said, ‘I’m all in. I will do whatever it takes to save her life. Let’s get this ball rolling.’”
In August, the sisters traveled up to UW for the transplant, which went “perfectly,” Holde said.
At the time of the surgery, doctors said the transplant would only last seven to 10 years, Holde said. More than three decades later, the sisters attribute their longer kidney lifespan to taking good of themselves and advanced medicine.
“Each year that passed, I couldn’t believe it,” Holde said. “I’m blessed. They said it was like an identical twin. I say she took it from me, it should have been mine.”
“Sometimes I say I’ll take it back,” Holde-White responded. “It depends on the day.”
Transplants between family members who are genetically similar lessens the risk of rejection, according to the National Kidney Foundation.
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