Pasadena mom uses Craigslist to seek a kidney for her daughter

[Karol]

My comment: This article fails to mention the closeness Jenna and I have, and how hard it is for someone to ask for a kidney donor for themselves, which is why I am advocating for her. I also think being chronically ill for so many years makes you question if you should hope for anything in the future. But our family is optimistic, and hoping something good comes from this media exposure. Thank you for reading and sharing the story!

Pasadena mom uses Craigslist to seek a kidney for her daughter

Daughter is embarrassed but understands
By Zen Vuong, Staff Writer
twitter.com/zenReport

Posted:   05/29/2013 07:58:07 PM PDT
Updated:   05/29/2013 10:45:54 PM PDT

PASADENA -- A Craigslist ad shows Jenna Franks - tall, slim and blond - looking into the distance with desire in her young, blue eyes.

"Are you my type?" the caption to the right of her photo asks in a suggestive, black font. And she's not particular about gender.

Franks isn't looking for Prince Charming or even a hook up. What she wants is the perfect kidney match.

And her mother, Karol Franks, helps in the quest. On a weekly basis Karol places new Craigslist ads seeking a donor for her daughter.

"I think that if enough people hear Jenna's story, they will be compelled to contact us if they think that this is something that they want to do," Karol said.

Beyond the tantalizing image, the words become more sobering. Jenna, who lives with her parents in Pasadena, has experienced kidney failure and expects to go on dialysis in mid-June if she can't find a replacement.

The family's Craigslist ad isn't the only outreach on the web. The Franks have posted a 13-minute YouTube video at youtu.be/D9ZuVJ_s80Y and set up a Facebook fan page, facebook.com/WantedKidneyDonor. The fan page features photos of the attractive young woman, while the video details her condition.

Since the ad was originally posted in August, about 250 people have emailed, saying they'll call the Scripps Green Hospital in La Jolla, Calif.,

to check if their kidney is a possible match, Karol said. There hasn't been a compatible donor yet, so Franks continues to renew her Craigslist ads throughout the western United States.
Although the ad says the donor would not profit from giving up an organ, Franks still gets about four or five sale offers daily from countries such as Russia, Egypt or India, she said.

"I wants to donate my kidney bcs i need money to pay all my debts. I m in huge problems now," wrote a "Chetan" from Mumbai, India, on Monday.

For now, Franks is scheduled for dialysis in June.

It's hard to project life expectancy for people on dialysis because many factors affect how long a patient might live, said Dr. Edmund Huang, an assistant professor of medicine who specializes in nephrology at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center. Organ transplant is a good option for many, but it isn't always the best option, he said.

"Some older people might be better off on hemodialysis as it provides greater socialization with other patients, doctors, nurses, and social workers" he said.

Younger people, however, would probably prefer peritoneal dialysis - a popular type of dialysis that is administered nightly at home - or an organ transplant because these options offer more independence, Huang added.

As a teen, Jenna wanted to be an actress, but her dreams were derailed at 15, when she was first diagnosed with kidney failure. She began to get hemodialysis for about four hours a day three times a week when she was a senior at Maranatha High School. With drive, waiting room and coagulation time, that added up to about 15 hours a week, the younger Franks said.

Karol turned to the Internet for help. She started i-korn.xanga.com because Xanga was a popular blogging site around 2005. She used caringbridge.org to update family, many of whom got tested to see if they were a kidney match.

In any event, Karol can't donate because she's the wrong blood type, and her husband, Edward, can't because he hurt his back years ago and is considered disabled. Her other three children, James, 25, Rebecca, 22, and Johnny, 18, are legally eligible to donate, but some aren't matches and others are too young to consider it, Jenna Franks' doctors said, because it's difficult to project someone's long-term medical problems when they're so young.

Those early efforts led the Franks family to Patrice Smith of Ohio. She donated a kidney in 2007. By 2010, Jenna's body began to reject the transplanted organ and once again her mom returned to the Internet to find a match.

While Jenna appreciates her mom's efforts, sometimes it bothers her.

"Sometimes I get a little overwhelmed because I'm a very private person and knowing so many people know about my problem on the Internet and stuff - it's very stressful for me. But that's what you have to do to get a kidney. "

Nationally, 96,314 people are waiting for a kidney, according to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. By far, it is the most-wanted organ in the waiting list. In Los Angeles, people usually have to wait 8 to 10 years before they get a donor kidney, Huang said.

"Three or four years is shorter than most kidney transplants would last," Huang said, referring to Jenna's situation. Kidney transplants "are not usually forever. In general, usually it's about 10 to 15 years," he said, adding that several factors come into play and that each patient may have different issues.

Jenna Franks' blood type is O, the universal donor blood type, which would be perfect if she wanted to donate a kidney. But of the four blood types, O is the second most difficult match to make, narrowly missing B for the longest wait, Huang said.

Tall, slim and anemic, Jenna Franks doesn't have a college degree, a boyfriend or a job. She took classes at Pasadena City College before, but her illness prevented her from continuing.

"I have a little shame because it's really hard," she said in a shaky voice before tears coursed down her pale face. "I don't drive. I don't have a job. I don't go to school. There are all these things I should do, but I can't because of my kidney. Even if I get a kidney, there's so much work I have to do before I'd even feel competent to do anything. "



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