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A Good Samaritan
There was also the problem of insurance. At the time, Kelli was covered through California Children’s Services (CCS), a state-run program for chronically ill children whose family has a yearly income less than $40,000. The Jaunsens qualified because Robert, a former deputy sheriff, had suffered two massive heart attacks and was forced to retire on a small pension. But while CCS had previously paid for everything, it didn’t cover this type of double transplant.Robert decided to take action. “My heart attack was a blessing in disguise,” he says, “because it let me really be here for Kelli.” He helped her launch an Internet site, and friends came up with ideas for auctions. “But there’s only so much you can do,” says Robert. “You can’t raise that kind of money through car washes.” So he turned to the media. In February 2004, the Los Angeles Times ran an article about a plucky girl who needed a double transplant. Some people wrote in to say that they would donate money, but the amount was minimal.
Then a miracle happened. After the article appeared, a Good Samaritan, who wishes to remain anonymous, came forward and offered to pay for the surgery. At first, the Jaunsens couldn’t believe it. But it was for real.
“Now we just had to find someone to do the surgery,” says Robert. In the Western United States, that left Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. In June 2005, when Kelli went to Cedars-Sinai, the team was daunted by the prospect. “She’d just been turned down by one of the largest transplant programs in the world,” says Lawrence Czer, MD, medical director of the Heart Transplant Program. But Cedars had already done one high-risk heart-liver transplant, and it had been so successful that the woman went on to run a marathon.
Dr. Czer was the first to interview Kelli. “She was scared,” he says, “but she was a hero.” After several rounds of tests, Dr. Czer and heart transplant surgeon Alfredo Trento, MD, concluded that Kelli’s case was high risk but possible. “The question was, how can we get around all the problems and be able to help this young woman who should have her whole life ahead of her?” says Dr. Czer. The heart team had several intense meetings and eventually voted yes. “But we had to get the liver team to buy in too,” says Dr. Czer.
Steven D. Colquhoun, MD, the surgical director of Cedars-Sinai’s liver transplantation team, says the staff agonized over the decision. “Being a parent,” he says, “I identified with Kelli’s dad, who made this his mission. I have a son, and if he needed anything, he could have my whole liver. So meeting Kelli and her family was very compelling.” In the end, the liver team also said yes.
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