Monica Fox, a mother from Chicago, Illinois, in the USA, who once battled kidney failure, received a life-saving kidney transplant from her daughter, Olivia, nearly a decade after first being diagnosed with chronic kidney disease.
Monica’s health struggle began in 2013 when what she thought was a sinus infection turned out to be a serious kidney condition. She immediately started dialysis, a treatment her doctor described as dangerous and often temporary.
In 2016, Monica received her first kidney transplant. But after contracting COVID pneumonia in 2022, her transplanted kidney failed, forcing her to return to dialysis.
“I was hopeful because I knew there was the opportunity to get a transplant and that that would be a better treatment for me,” Monica said. Many people offered to donate, but none were a match.
That was until her daughter, Olivia, stepped forward again. Olivia had been tested as a potential donor back in 2015, just before graduating from college.
At the time, Monica didn’t want to take her daughter’s kidney. Years later, when the need became urgent, Olivia insisted. Working as a Transplant Outreach Coordinator at the University of Illinois Hospital, she was already familiar with the procedure and confident about her decision.
“This was kind of just my chance to really put my kidney where my mouth is and like do exactly what I’ve been telling people is such a good thing,” Olivia said.
“And now I’m living proof. I’m living proof that, you know, this works.”
Doctors say kidney transplants from living donors significantly improve survival rates, with recipients living nearly twice as long as those who remain on dialysis. Monica’s surgery, led by Dr. Ivo Tzvetanov at UI Health, was successful.
“She underwent surgery for the sole purpose of saving my life,” Monica said.
“You know, afterwards, she has not been feeling very well, but she’s getting better day by day, doing everything she has to do to feel better. But she said, even in her sickest moments, she said, ‘Mom, I would do it all over again for you.’”
Both mother and daughter are now recovering well. Monica continues her work as the Senior Director of Outreach at the National Kidney Foundation of Illinois, using her experience to encourage others to consider living organ donation.
