When Karen Rodas and Paul Rybkin’s son Nathaniel was born he lived for just 36 hours.
He was born with a rare condition called Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD) which causes cysts to grow in the kidneys which can lead to kidney failure.
The New Jersey couple had another child in 2013 Maddy who had the same condition as the couple’s first child but after a two-year struggle with the disease this little girl was given a lifeline – thanks to her dad.
Maddy Rbykin’s condition had caused her stomach to swell and for the first 18 months of her life she was in and out of hospital.
Despite the hospital visits, tubes and oxygen treatments Maddy was doing okay, until her health started to deteriorate.
Maddy was completely drained of energy, sleeping up to 18 hours a day and constantly vomiting, according to The Mirror.
Doctors feared she might die unless a suitable kidney donor was found.
Successful operation
Her dad Paul was then identified as a match and was able to give his daughter the life-saving operation she needed.
“With Paul and Maddy, two of my most precious souls, going under the knife, my nerves were a wreck,” Karen said, according to The Mirror.
The operation was a success and both daddy and daughter are doing well.
“Daddy’s kidney has saved our little girl,” Karen added. “Now, she has boundless energy. Her massive tummy now just looks a little bit rounded and she is a happy and healthy two-year-old.”
A modest Paul said he would have done what any other parent would.
‘Happy and healthy little girl’
“We have been on a rollercoaster – but any father would have done what I did, donating my kidney to Maddy. It’s part of being a parent,” he said, according to The Mirror.
“Now we are on a high and can watch Maddy grow up as a happy and healthy little girl.”
Maddy will need another kidney transplant in 25 years, but for her parents, that feels like a “lifetime away.”
You can follow Maddy’s journey here, where her mom continues to update how it goes for her daughter – it’s great to see her progress and how’s she doing today, in 2023.
So happy that something could be done. Bless her and her dad too!
