‘A football game changed my life’: Jamison’s non-directed kidney donation

When recess is your favorite school subject, and you’re so naturally funny that the adults in your life belly laugh after everything you say, you get the title of a “cool kid” — well, at least if you’re Jamison. At 10, Jamison has an easy-going attitude that you wouldn’t expect once you hear he experienced serious health struggles from the time he was a toddler, resulting in a major surgery when he was just 8.

A hidden diagnosis

Jamison had potty-training issues, which isn’t uncommon for toddlers; however, the issues persisted as he was turning 5. Although Jamison’s mom, Bethany, was alarmed, he had no other symptoms. 

Eventually, however, testing revealed that Jamison had been born with a condition called posterior urethral valves. This condition prevents the body from expelling urine properly, which causes the organs in the urinary tract (kidneys, ureters, bladder, and urethra) to become dilated (swollen). Luckily, doctors in Maine were able to treat this condition through surgery, but the damage to his bladder and kidney was already done.

Bethany, Jamison’s dad, Matt, and stepmom, April, came together to look for the best hospital to take Jamison for further care, landing at Boston Children’s Department of Urology.

How football changed the game

Due to the extensive damage done to his kidneys, Jamison needed a kidney transplant. “We were all shocked,” says Bethany. “To learn your child needs a transplant — there was a lot of emotion.” However, Jamison’s entire family agrees that the team in the Kidney Transplant Program — especially JoAnn Morey and Courtney Risley— went above and beyond to make sure they had all their questions answered and understood the transplant process.

After trying to find a living donor in Jamison’s family didn’t work, he was put on the national transplant list to wait for his match. But it was when Matt took Jamison to a San Francisco 49ers game that a news report about his journey to find a donor caught the eye of someone watching at home. He was being featured to help him find a potential match for his kidney transplant, and his story moved a stranger so deeply that she felt compelled to act.

A living non-directed donor — someone that does not know the transplant recipient — felt compelled to donate her kidney to Jamison after hearing his story. This living non-directed donation not only helped Jamison avoid being placed on kidney dialysis, but also allowed him to receive life-changing care sooner, removing him from the long waitlist.

While his donor wishes to remain anonymous to the public, she reached out to the family a month before the surgery to let them know who she was and why she decided to donate. She even explained that the entire process of becoming a donor was a lot easier than she imagined, making her feel even more confident in her decision.

“The donor and her husband drove all the way from Southeastern U.S. to Boston just to avoid being in crowded places so that she would be healthy for the surgery,” explains Matt. “To have someone care so much about a child they’ve never met is truly incredible.”

A cool kid all around

When you ask Jamison about his transplant, he shrugs his shoulders and says that he wasn’t nervous about the whole experience — except on the night before surgery. “He had an amazing nurse, Kimberlyn, who stayed with him all night and kept telling jokes,” shares April. That’s the thing about Jamison: He loves to make people laugh. “Even before going into surgery, he was cracking jokes until he fell asleep,” shares April.

Following a successful transplant, Jamison recovered smoothly — with the help of the Boston Children’s cafeteria grilled cheese, of course. “That was the best grilled cheese I ever had,” shares Jamison, who his parents describe as a grilled cheese expert. 

Since his transplant, Jamison and his family have been in close contact with his donor and are extremely grateful for her act of kindness. Now, the cool tween can live a full life of joking around, playing outside, and enjoying the company of his parents. “That football game saved my life — she saved my life,” shares Jamison.

Learn more about the Pediatric Transplant Center and register to become an organ donor.