Little Girl Suffering From Rare Disease Receives Life-Saving Kidney Donation From Her Father

Oct 10, 2019 by apost team

Most times, parents cannot do anything but hold out hope when their child is struck with a dire illness. However, there are times when they can really come through in a huge way.

Paul Rybkin and Karen Rodas’ son Nathaniel was only 36 hours old when he passed away from polycystic kidney disease (PDK). This rare condition causes cysts to grow in the kidneys, which regularly leads to kidney failure.

The New Jersey couple would eventually have another child in 2013, and this daughter, Maddy, was also born with PDK. She struggled for a long two years until she was given a lifeline from her doting father.

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Maddy’s stomach was swelling due to her condition, and for her first year and a half of life, she logged many days and nights in the hospital. Treatment was making a difference, but eventually, her health began to decline.

Paul was identified as a match for kidney donation and was able to give his little girl what she so desperately needed. The life-saving operation was a gleaming success.

Mom, Karen, said to The Sun,

"With Paul and Maddy, two of my most precious souls, going under the knife, my nerves were a wreck.”

“Daddy’s kidney has saved our little girl. 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,” Karen added.

Paul believes he simply did what any other parent would have done. Of his extraordinary act, he said, "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. Now we are on a high and can watch Maddy grow up as a happy and healthy little girl.”

In 25 years, Maddy will need another kidney, but her parents have said that it feels like a lifetime away. Follow Maddy’s amazing journey here, and encourage others to read about the young lady and her father’s unconditional love.