Transplant Center

Patient Testimonials

Living Liver Donor Recipient Feels “Wonderful” After Transplant Surgery

Sam Fike Sr., right with his son Sam Jr.

In 2005, Sam “Kenny” Fike Sr. was diagnosed with cirrhosis of the liver after an esophageal bleed. He then went to the University of Maryland Medical Center for treatment, where doctors told him he would need a liver transplant. Luckily, Kenny’s son Sam volunteered to donate part of his liver to his father. The living liver donor transplant took place at the University of Maryland in March of 2006. After the surgery, Fike Sr. says he felt “wonderful.” Here, the Eastern Shore resident talks about his treatment experience at the University of Maryland Transplant Center.

When were you diagnosed?

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I got sick on June 5, 2005. I went to the hospital because of an esophageal bleed. They treated me and then they checked my liver, which wasn’t functioning properly. I went through many tests. Finally I was diagnosed with cirrhosis. It turns out the esophageal bleed was caused by liver disease.

It just kind of came on. I’m in agricultural sales. My work was strenuous, and I was tired. They continued to monitor me.

How did you come to the University of Maryland Medical Center?

At the Easton hospital, they told me I had a liver problem and needed to see a specialist. I was referred to a liver specialist at the University of Maryland by a friend, Dr. Thomas M. Scalea [Director, Program in Trauma and Physician-in-Chief, R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center].

My daughter was in a terrible accident a few years ago and Dr. Scalea saved her life. So we became very close.

What happened next?

I saw a liver doctor at the Medical Center at the end of August 2005. I was diagnosed with cirrhosis. They said I was in trouble and needed a liver transplant. I was beyond repair so I was put on the transplant list. The MELD score number they give you determines when you’re next in line. I was put on at number 17 or 18, and that can take two to three years. So the next best thing was trying to find a living donor.

My son, Sam Jr., said he wanted to participate. He insisted. At first I didn’t want him to do it. He went through a whole bunch of tests to see if he was a match. It turns out he was a “perfect” match, which means I didn’t have to be on that list anymore.

When we found out he was a match we set a date. The first possible time was March 8th, 2006. Dr. Benjamin Philosophe [head of UMMC’s Division of Transplantation and associate professor of surgery at the University of Maryland School of Medicine] did the surgery, which took 12 hours.

How did you feel after the surgery? What was your recovery like?

After the operation I felt wonderful. I felt terrible before the surgery -- very sick, tired and nauseated. I was going downhill and didn’t have too much longer to live.

After the surgery, I went from feeling terrible to feeling completely different. I had no aches and pains. It was a wonderful feeling. I felt like I was alive. I can eat and walk and I’m not restricted. I’m on a regular diet now.

The first day after the operation I felt wonderful. It was the first time I’d had anything substantial to eat. Before the surgery, I was on a restricted diet and I couldn’t eat a regular diet until after the operation.

I was in hospital for eight days. My son went back to work in six weeks. I still take anti- rejection medication.

What type of follow-up care do you receive?

In the beginning, after the surgery, I had follow-up visits weekly, then every two weeks. I had blood test taken every two weeks. Then, six months after surgery, they see you periodically. I continue to get blood work done monthly. Now I follow-up with Andrea Waldt, a post-transplant nurse coordinator.

How do you feel about University of Maryland doctors/staff and the care you received?

Excellent. I can’t say enough about the doctors and the whole transplant team, including Dr. Philosophe, Dr. Campos, and Linda Ridge and Debbie Virden, the liver transplant coordinators. They treat you excellent. They are great doctors who are very personable and professional. There’s not a thing they wouldn’t do for me.

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This page was last updated on: January 7, 2009.