Former MLB pitcher finds liver donor in high-school classmate he hadn't seen in 20 years
A man's Facebook plea for a liver donor attracted the attention of a high-school acquaintance he hadn't spoken to in years In April after experiencing appetite loss and losing pounds in a month Steven Register was diagnosed with stage colon cancer according to SWNS Doctors notified the former MLB pitcher who played for the Colorado Rockies in and the Philadelphia Phillies in that a liver transplant was likely his best chance of survival MAN WITH STAGE CANCER RAISES K FOR EXPERIMENTAL MEDICATION When we first met with the doctors they gave me a year to a year-and-a-half to live Register explained adding that he and his wife Beth right now started researching options The couple traveled from Auburn Alabama to the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston Texas where Register underwent surgery for a temporary ostomy bag and began chemotherapy per the SWNS record Plans for the liver resection were canceled when doctors discovered the tumors were too large which led the couple to consider a transplant Register's wife created a Facebook group to search for a living liver donor hoping someone would come forward in time Kristin Johnston a -year-old preschool instructor from Roswell Georgia saw the post and recognized Register as a former high-school classmate The two had met in at Shaw High School in Columbus Georgia but hadn t spoken in over two decades SWNS stated ALCOHOL-RELATED LIVER TRANSPLANTS ON THE RISE AMONG YOUNG ADULTS PRACTITIONER SAYS It was just so far out of left field disclosed Register who couldn t believe it when Johnston volunteered to donate part of her liver He added I haven't seen or talked to her in over years and for her to reach out like that it was just meant to be Johnston mentioned she started by doing a quick online search for live liver donation and discovered that blood type compatibility was the first step I just sent him a message she noted I explained 'hey what's your blood type ' and he declared 'I'm B positive ' She responded Wait that s mine too and offered I ll happily donate a lobe if I m a match HIV-POSITIVE TRANSPLANTS NOW PERMITTED FOR LIVERS AND KIDNEYSJohnston was later cleared as a match and received the confirmation on a meaningful day I got the news on Good Friday of all days that I was officially cleared as his liver donor she declared The surgery which is expected to take to hours will involve removing of Johnston s liver and transplanting it into Register according to SWNS Both her remaining liver and the donated portion will regenerate over time giving both a second chance at strength For her she is ultimately giving him the gift of life for him a really fresh start in this journey stated Beth Register Steven Register added Hopefully once I get my liver with all the tumor and cancer out I ll be cancer-free from there The Register family including children McKenzie Blakely and Brooks launched a benefit event on SupportNow to help with voyage food and curative expenses Johnston and her husband Cody a real estate developer have three kids of their own Sawyer Teddy and Dahlia Beth Register explained she hopes their family's story raises awareness about the impact of living organ donation A lot of people don t realize that live donations whether it be for livers or kidneys are even an option she explained She added that Johnston has been selfless from the start The families believe fate had a hand in reconnecting them per SWNS We just pray that God is opening all the right doors and that Kristin is the perfect donor for him Beth Register disclosed For more Wellness articles visit www foxnews com healthShe continued We just appreciate her being willing to put her life on pause to hopefully lengthen his life by plenty of plenty of plenty of years
