"Fun" Sibling Rivalry Spurs on Successful Kidney Donation During Pandemic

Local family business owners, the Zipsers have always had close professional and personal relationships. “We’ve always been a bit of a competitive family – always had an edge,” Shawn Zipser, 53, described his relationship with his two sisters and his father, Mike, 76.

Fifteen years ago, Mike was diagnosed with Stage 1 kidney cancer and had his cancerous kidney removed to save his life. Fortunately, all the cancer was encapsulated in that one kidney. But, a decade and a half later, even well-controlled diabetes took a toll on Mike’s remaining kidney. Mike was told, in September 2020 that Dialysis was going to be needed, urgently, within the next few months.

“I didn’t want dialysis,” Mike pleaded.

“He had seen a family member undergo dialysis years ago,” Mike’s wife Ann said. “The kidney team assured us that dialysis methods have improved; that many people do very well on dialysis.”

But another option appealed to Mike – a kidney transplant. After careful consideration, they chose Mercy Health Kidney Transplant Department because of how transparent the eligibility criteria are. The Zipsers soon learned that a living donor would be most ideal, and even better, if from a family member.

“The benefits of a living donor are numerous,” said R. Michael Hofmann, MD, Living Donor medical director for Mercy Health. “They include the longest potential survival of the kidney transplant, the best kidney quality and, most importantly, the ability to avoid time on the kidney transplant waitlist.”

What happened next was “remarkable,” according to Mike.

“All three of my kids talked it over, and whoever was the best qualified was going to donate their kidney to me,” said Mike.

“His whole family was eager to help him achieve this goal of receiving a living donor transplant,” said Hofmann.

Over the next several weeks, Shawn and his two sisters each underwent a series of tests at Mercy Health to see how likely one of them was to be a match for their father.

“When I decided I wanted to go through the process to see if I could donate a kidney, it became a fun competition among my two sisters and me,” said Shawn. “Every time one of us went in for testing or got a call from the Kidney Transplant team at Mercy Health, we were sure to let the others know they were ‘behind’ that day.

Being named the “winner” of the kidney donation among his siblings, Shawn received the news after undergoing a series of tests in December 2020 at Mercy Health.

“I texted my wife, ‘It’s about to get real,’” he recalled. The surgery date was quickly set for February 1, 2021, as Mike’s creatinine levels were plummeting.

And real it got.

After the successful transplant, both Shawn and Mike are so grateful for their experience at Mercy Health. “The way Mercy Health fast-tracked everything without cutting corners, all to make sure I didn’t have to go on dialysis before I could get my transplant, I was so appreciative,” said Mike. “It meant so much to me that all my children would do this for me. It took a lot of strain off me.”

“But anyone would do this for their dad,” Shawn said. “The whole experience, I would do it all again, no regrets.”

To learn more about the Kidney Transplant Center or the kidney donation process, please visit Mercy Health's Kidney Transplant Program.