Health
Family pleads for kidney donor as teen’s health declines: ‘We need help’
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A New Jersey family is desperately seeking a living donor to save Thaddeus Giansanti, an eighth-grader who was born with kidney disease.
Thaddeus has had multiple surgeries throughout his 13 years, including one to remove a kidney as a baby.
Despite his struggles, he has remained positive and optimistic, his parents shared with Fox News Digital.
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“His remaining kidney is now failing,” said his father, Carlo Giansanti. “We are not a match, so now we’re asking for help from the community.”
The family first found out about their son’s kidney disease before he was born, when an ultrasound detected a potential issue.
Christa DeMark and Carlo Giansanti are pictured with their son Thaddeus, who has battled kidney disease his entire life. (Christa DeMark)
“It was nothing alarming at that point — it looked like he had extra fluid when he was born,” Thaddeus’ mother, Christa DeMark, told Fox News Digital. “Everything seemed normal, but right before we were leaving, they noticed an elevated creatinine number (a measure of kidney function in blood tests) that led to us being in touch with nephrology.”
She added, “There was something wrong with the ureters (tubes that carry urine from the kidneys to the bladder) and the formation of the kidneys.”
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Thaddeus spent an extended period of time in the NICU, where he had multiple procedures. Before he was even 5 months old, he underwent a left nephrectomy to remove his left kidney.
His remaining kidney was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease, which has required lifelong medications.
“He’s been with nephrology and nephrologists his entire life, and up until last year, everything’s been stable, but that’s been slowly changing,” DeMark said. “He’s getting bigger, and it’s been putting more stress on his remaining kidney.”
Thaddeus, now 13, has had multiple surgeries throughout his life, including one to remove his kidney as a baby. (Christa DeMark)
Doctors informed the family that their best course of action would be to find a living donor.
“Everything’s been sped up based on his bloodwork lately,” DeMark said. “So it’s looking like we need something quicker than we thought, which is why we’re looking for living donors.”
“It has pushed us to rely on faith in a way that’s very palpable — we are just coming together as a family and taking each day as it comes.”
If Thaddeus does not receive a kidney transplant within a couple of weeks, he will need to be put on dialysis, according to his doctors.
“It’s obviously been challenging for him,” DeMark said. “He’s dealing with it very well, but these are difficult situations we’re navigating.”
His parents describe Thaddeus as a smart, outgoing boy — a straight-A student who was recently awarded multiple scholarships for next year, when he will become a high-school freshman.
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Thaddeus is very athletic and enjoys playing soccer, golfing and fencing. He also plays piano and often volunteers in his community, including being an altar server and working with the local food pantry.
“He loves his family, and loves doing things with his family,” DeMark said. “He’s just a great kid.”
The boy’s remaining kidney is failing, and his family is asking the community to help find a life-saving donor. (Christa DeMark)
Thaddeus’ parents said they have not shared much about their son’s medical condition until now. “We wanted Thad to just be the bright, happy person that he is, so we’ve minimized it for years,” DeMark said.
But in the last couple of weeks, as their son’s condition has become more dire, they have started to speak out about their situation.
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“We never expected to have such an outpouring of people who cared or people trying to help — it’s been incredibly humbling,” DeMark said.
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“It has pushed us to rely on faith in a way that’s very palpable — we are just coming together as a family and taking each day as it comes,” she went on. “We are remaining hopeful because we know there’s a solution to this problem. We just need help.”
“The miracle Thad needs right now is people who have the ability to step up,” his mother said. “He is a great kid, a kind kid.” (Christa DeMark)
To be considered for the donation program, kidney donors must be 45 or younger, have a BMI under 30 and match Thaddeus’ O blood type.
For those who are considering becoming donors, DeMark emphasized that it entails a laparoscopic procedure with a “fairly quick” healing process that is covered by their insurance, not the donor’s.
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“The miracle Thad needs right now is people who have the ability to step up,” she added. “He is a great kid, a kind kid.”
Those interested in being considered as a donor can complete this Kidney Transplant Living Donor Questionnaire.
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Surviving cancer as a child or young adult may have a lasting impact on aging, new research suggests.
Researchers at the University of Rochester Medical Center looked at whether life-saving treatments, like chemotherapy and radiation, could speed up biological aging.
They also aimed to determine whether this age acceleration was linked to cognitive issues related to memory, focus and learning.
The team analyzed blood samples from a group of 1,400 long-term survivors treated at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, using epigenetic clocks — tools that estimate biological age by examining chemical tags on DNA.
Biological age is determined based on damage the cells accumulate over time, versus chronological age, which is measured by how long someone has been alive, according to scientists.
Biological age is determined based on the damage cells accumulate over time, according to scientists. (iStock)
“These well-established aging-related biomarkers have previously been associated with neurocognitive impairment and decline in older non-cancer populations, particularly in cognitive domains related to aging and dementia, such as memory, attention and executive function,” the study stated.
Most of the group consisted of acute lymphoblastic leukemia survivors, or Hodgkin lymphoma survivors. Participants were at least five years past their treatment, though some had survived for several decades.
They underwent neurocognitive testing to measure their attention span, memory and information processing speed.
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Chemotherapy was found to have the greatest impact on aging acceleration. The study suggests the treatment can alter DNA structure and cause cellular damage.
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“It’s no surprise to find out that young people with cancer who have chemo early in life are affected in terms of long-term aging,” Dr. Marc Siegel, senior medical analyst for Fox News, told Fox News Digital.
Participants underwent neurocognitive testing to measure their attention span, memory and speed of information processing. (iStock)
Researchers also found that cellular aging was closely linked to cognitive performance, as survivors of a higher biological age had more difficulty with memory and attention.
“Chemo poisons and damages cellular function — hopefully the cancer cells more than normal cells, but there is a significant impact on normal cells as well,” said Siegel, who was not involved in the study.
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“There is also something called ‘chemo brain,’ which causes at least temporary difficulty with memory, concentration, word finding and brain fog,” the doctor added.
The research team hopes to use these findings to focus on intervention efforts, specifically by determining when accelerated aging begins.
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“Young cancer survivors have many more decades of life to live,” lead study author AnnaLynn Williams, PhD, said in a press release. “If these accelerated aging changes are occurring early on and setting them on a different trajectory, the goal is to intervene to not only increase their lifespan, but improve their quality of life.”
The team hopes this research will help in the development of early intervention tools that aim to prevent cognitive decline. (iStock)
There were some limitations to the study. The researchers could not adjust for chronic health conditions or education because they are directly impacted by treatment.
Additionally, the study only looked at the survivors at a single point of time, so it could not directly prove causation.
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The study was published in the journal Nature Communications.
Fox News Digital reached out to the researchers for comment.
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