Living Transplant Podcast

Release Date: April 4, 2024 | 

WELCOME TO SEASON 5! In this episode, host Candice Coghlan was joined by Vanessa Tait, a Cree woman from O-Pipon-Na-Piwin Cree Nation who put her heart and soul into supporting her father, Kenneth, through his kidney health journey. She uprooted their lives to move from her father's home community of O-Pipon-Na-Piwin Cree Nation, over 700km north of Winnipeg, to the city to access dialysis, as there were no hemodialysis machines and no capacity to do home dialysis, with the lack of access to large amounts of water needed. While in Winnipeg, Vanessa was his primary caregiver. We spoke about their journey together, the medical barriers they and many other First Nations patients face, and the decision for Vanessa to give the gift of life, a kidney to her father, despite his chances of survival being long so he could live his days out in community, surrounded by loved ones.

We were later joined by Dr. Michael Anderson from the Urban Indigenous Community in Toronto. He is Mohawk Bear Clan and mixed European with family roots in Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory. He practices surgical oncology in palliative care medicine and is the strategic lead for Indigenous Health at the University Health Network. We spoke about ethical Indigenous community healthcare research partnerships, grief, healing, and Indigenous conceptualizations of death and dying. This episode is dedicated, in loving memory to Vanessa's "daddio", Kenneth.

​CONTENT WARNING 

A note to our listeners, this episode comes with a content warning as we discuss death, dying, and palliative care. We also discuss barriers to care for Indigenous communities. If you need resources or support, you can visit the Hope for Wellness helpline (1 855 242 3310 or Hope For Wel​lness), the Bereaved Families of Ontario Organization (416 440 0290), or the UHN Indigenous Health Program. To watch Vanessa Tait's documentary, Gift to Give p​lease visit: CBC G​ift to Give. To watch Vanessa Tait's Great Actions Leave a Mark interview, please visit: Great Actions. To learn more about living kidney donation, please visit: Living Kidney Donor.

Release Date: May 2, 2024 | 

In this episode of the Living Transplant podcast, host Candice Coghlan was joined by Kelsey Hannah, an OR nurse and mother who went on a journey of health and wellness to lose weight to save her mother's life by donating a portion of her liver to her. We talked about her journey of self reflection, empowerment, dedication, and what it felt like to juggle life while the clock ticked down getting closer to her mother needing that gift of life of a liver transplant.

We were later joined by Chantal Wiggins, a Transplant Coordinator at the Ajmera Transplant Centre in the Living Donor Liver Program. We spoke about the processes that donors have to go through to ensure their health and safety, memorable moments in her career, and what it feels like to get to be part of a team that truly saves lives.

The views and opinions expressed in this episode do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Toronto General or University Health Network.

To learn more about living liver donation, please visit Living Liver Donation.

Release Date: June 6, 2024 

In this episode of the Living Transplant podcast, host Candice, was joined by Dawn Ethier, a police officer and mother of four. Dawn had thyroid cancer over 10 years ago. The cancer was treated, but she was left with hypoparathyroidism, which caused horrible side effects, changed her lifestyle, and took a lot of time away from her family, her work, and her life. Dawn did a lot of research, and with her advocacy and ingenuity, brought the idea of a parathyroid transplant to her doctors, who eventually found Dr. Karen Devon, an endocrine surgeon at UHN's Sprott Department of Surgery.

With only one other recorded case of this exact transplant in scientific literature, Dr. Devon was inspired by Dawn to do homework, connect with specialists around the world, and several years later, cured Dawn's hypoparathyroidism following a ground-breaking North American first procedure at UHN's Ajmera Transplant Centre. This changed Dawn's life, her family's life, and changed the future for patients.

The views and opinions expressed in this episode do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Toronto General or University Health Network.

For more about Dawn's story, and the team behind this North American first, please visit Dawn's Story.

For more information about Ajmera Transplant Centre, please visit Ajmera Transplant Centre.

Release Date: July 4, 2024 |

In this episode of the Living Transplant podcast, host Candice Coghlan was joined by Jillian Best, the first organ transplant recipient and one in only 72 people to ever swim across Lake Ontario in all of recorded history. Jillian trained, swam and built her mental fortitude so she could swim across Lake Ontario in 18 hours and 36 minutes. She finished the historic 52 kilometer crossing to raise money for the transplant unit who saved her life and her mother's.

We are later joined by Dr. Marie Faughnan, a Lung Specialist and HHT specialist at St. Michael's Hospital. As an avid cycler and physician, Dr. Marie was healthy and ready when a colleague of hers experienced liver failure and was in need of a life saving liver transplant. She asked herself, "why not me?" She went through the process of going from a physician to a patient and became a living liver donor to save her colleague's life. Throughout this episode, we talk about perseverance, commitment, sacrifice and doing hard things with extreme bravery. Please enjoy.

The views and opinions expressed in this episode do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Toronto General or University Health Network.

For more information about living liver donation, please visit Living Organ Donation.

For more information about Jillian Best's swim across Lake Ontario, please visit Jillian Best's Swim.

To listen to Dr. Marie Faughnan's story and other living donors and recipients, please visit Great Actions.

Release Date: August 5, 2024

In this episode of the Living Transplant podcast, host, Candice Coghlan, was joined by Manuel Escoto, the Patient, Family, Donor Partnerships and Knowledge Mobilization Director at CDTRP (Canadian Donation and Transplantation Research Program) alongside Sadia Baig, the Programs Coordinator at the Kidney Foundation of Canada, Ontario branch. What is the common thread between the three of us you might be thinking? Well, all of us are not only working in the field of transplant, donation and chronic illness, but we're all living with kidney disease diagnosed at a young age.

We speak about being diagnosed with a chronic disease, the mental and physical roller coasters, working in a professional field that we also have a personal connection to, what it's like to connect with others who are going through something similar, and the importance of advocacy and having a strong network of support. Join the three of us as we dive into these topics in a unique episode where the people with lived experience are also the experts in the field. Please enjoy.

The views and opinions expressed in this episode do not necessarily reflect the offical policy or position of Toronto General or University Health Network.

For more information about kidney transplantation, please visit Living Organ Donation.

For more information about CDTRP, please visit Canadian Donation and Transplantation Research Program.

For more information about the Kidney Foundation of Canada, please visit Kidney Foundation.

Release Date: September 6, 2024

In this episode of the Living Transplant podcast, host, Candice Coghlan was joined by Stephanie Dyriw, a living liver donor to her son. Stephanie was put in a situation no parent could ever imagine, when her healthy, three and a half year old son crashed into liver failure with no warning. Within days, Stephanie and the UHN team worked tirelessly to get the testing done in partnership with SickKids to find if she would be a match, and thankfully, within mere days, Stephanie became a living liver donor to her son, saving his life.

We are later joined by Dr. Nazia Selzner, a transplant hepatologist and Medical Director of the Living Donor Liver Transplant Program at the Ajmera Transplant Centre, and Dr. Cynthia Tsien, Education Director of the Ajmera Transplant Centre. We spoke about diversity, equity and inclusion in transplant, both for professionals and for patients and families. We discussed how equity, diversity, and inclusion in transplant medicine are crucial to ensuring all patients have fair access to life saving treatments, regardless of their background, leading to better overall health outcomes, and how for professionals, fostering an inclusive environment enhances teamwork, broadens perspectives, and improves decision making, ultimately advancing the field and providing more comprehensive care. Please enjoy.

The views and opinions expressed in this episode do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Toronto General or University Health Network.

For more information about Great Actions Leave a Mark, please visit Great Actions.

For more information about living liver transplant, please visit Liver Transplant Program.

To register for the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Transplant conference, please visit Diversity, Equity & Inclusion in Transplantation.

Release Date: November 29. 2024

In this episode of the Living Transplant podcast, host Candice Coghlan is joined by Winnie Jerome who talks to us about her journey as a living donor to her sister through the Kidney Paired Donation Program, making that decision after having a premature newborn baby at home. She spoke about how when she found out she was able to donate a kidney to a stranger, so her sister would receive a kidney from a stranger, the excitement was too much to hold.

We are later joined by Darlene Jagusic, a registered nurse and the Program Manager for the Kidney Paired Donation and Highly Sensitized Patient Program at Canadian Blood Services. We discuss hope for those waiting, the details and intricacies of the Kidney Paired Donation Program, and the gratitude we have for organ donors. Please enjoy.

The views and opinions expressed in this episode do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Toronto General or University Health Network.

For more information about kidney transplantation, please visit: Kidney Transplant Program.

For more information about the Kidney Paired Donation Program, please visit: Kidney Paired Donation Program.

To watch Winnie & Fadia's story on Great Actions, please visit: Great Actions.

Release Date: February 27, 2025

In this episode of the Living Transplant podcast, host Candice Coghlan is joined by Loi Nguyen, a father, outdoorsman, and very positive person who is living with polycystic kidney disease. We discussed his journey from diagnosis to kidney modality options, to the life-changing call that a living kidney donor was ready to donate a kidney to him through the paired exchange program.

We're later joined by Christine Bruce, the Senior Director of Laboratory Medicine at UHN. Not only is Christine the Director of the program, but she is also an anonymous kidney donor. After reading an email about Living Donation Week, she decided to become a donor, transitioning from a practitioner to a patient. Please enjoy.

The views and opinions expressed in this episode do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Toronto General or University Health Network.

For more information about living organ donation, please visit Living Organ Donatio​n.

For more information about living kidney transplantation, please visit: Living Kidney Donation.

For more information about Polycystic Kidney Disease, please visit PKD Foundation.