WINNEMUCCA - Feb. 1, 2012, was the date of Melissa Cates' kidney transplant. The year since her transplant has been a year of healing, a year of happily returning to a less restrictive diet, and a year of freedom from the kidney dialysis treatments that had been a fact of life for Melissa for three and a half years.
But to have a full appreciation for the delightfully cheerful, positive and courageous woman pictured requires an understanding of what came before her kidney failure diagnosis.
Cates has dealt with diabetes and all its complications since she was diagnosed with Type 1 Juvenile Diabetes (T1D) at age nine.
But what Cates considers the "real challenges of her life" started on March 2, 2008. On that date Cates' 21-year-old daughter Natasha was in a near-fatal car accident that left her paralyzed from the waist down.
Cates had been plagued by a lack of energy for about a year before her daughter's accident, but she became truly exhausted during the time she and her husband were taking care of her daughter's toddler and traveling back and forth all the time to Reno to be with their hospitalized daughter.
Cates went to the doctor who immediately sent her to a kidney specialist, who diagnosed kidney failure. Dialysis treatment started immediately, but was particularly difficult due to the traveling to and from the out-of-town dialysis center. After a time, she and her family received training and support to do home dialysis.
During her illness and hospitalizations, her husband Larry worked for Harrison Western as an underground mining consultant. The company stood behind him and Melissa and allowed him to be at her side when he was needed.
He changed jobs after a time, but Melissa said he's been blessed to work for another wonderful, family-oriented company, Small Mine Development (SMD).
While Melissa was on the kidney transplant list, she went through additional testing to determine whether she could withstand the five- to seven-hour transplant surgery. During the testing process, doctors gave her the jaw-dropping news that she needed double bypass and mitral valve open heart surgery.
Her next challenge was a diabetic crisis with her feet. She had been suffering from neuropathy for some time (painful nerve death due to lack of circulation). When her feet became so painful she couldn't stand, a diabetic specialist referred her to a surgeon, who scheduled a procedure to attempt to clean out the veins and arteries in her feet to try and restore circulation. While waiting for the procedure, her feet began bleeding.
The surgeon told Melissa and her husband that amputation of her feet was the only remaining option; he explained that the usual operation removed the feet just above the ankle. However, he continued explaining that usually additional amputations of more portions of the lower legs became necessary, and he wondered what she wanted to do.
Melissa says her husband about fainted when she told the doctor, "Take them off below the knee. I
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am waiting for a kidney transplant and I can't be back in surgery and on antibiotics for more amputations." The amputation was done on Feb. 14, 2011.
After the amputation and subsequent healing, Melissa was fitted with prosthetic legs by "Amputee Consultants," an office in Washoe Valley owned and run exclusively by amputees who know exactly what their clients are facing and how best to help them. She chose the metal bar-type prosthetics that attach to "feet" that can wear tennis shoes (because each leg is six pounds lighter than the type of prosthesis that more closely resembles a leg).
She hasn't chosen to cover up her metal legs, but usually wears capris, for two reasons: "long pants get hung up on the knee part of my prosthetic legs, and I don't mind if people see my prosthetics, because then, if they or someone they know is facing something like this, they feel like they can come up and talk to me about it."
Does she mind telling her story to strangers? Absolutely not. "It makes me feel great if I can help someone else, I would never want anyone to have to go through what I've gone through, but if they have to go through something hard, I'd love to be able to give them the kind of help and support others have given me."
Melissa's youngest brother, Kevin, came to live with her and her husband, and began helping with the home hemodialysis. Kevin volunteered to see if he could be a match and donate a kidney to Melissa. He was a match and a transplant date was set for Feb. 1, 2012.
To help her prepare for her transplant, Melissa was given the contact information of another Winnemucca woman, Cindy Larios, who had gone through a kidney transplant five years earlier - someone with whom she could talk about the challenges involved before, during, and after transplant surgery. (Cindy Larios' story by Jessica Szabo was featured in "A Better Life" for the March 5-7 edition of the Humboldt Sun.)
Melissa said talking with Cindy was so helpful and gave her much hope for a good recovery.
The support of Melissa's family has also been incredible; "My husband has been wonderful through all of this."
She said that her older brother John Cates, mother Joan Wytcherley (who actually retired from her job to be able to help Melissa), parents-in-law David and Gisela Cates, all helped and supported her.
And finally, she noted it's hard to describe the bond she shares with her younger brother, Kevin. "We're so close; my younger brother saved my life."
And Melissa's daughter, who was paralyzed in a car accident? She is still in a wheelchair; but is also a very busy woman. There was a soldier who wrote to her from Iraq every day after her accident (they'd gone to school together and had talked about dating before he left for Iraq). When he came home, they married, and their baby is now nine months old.
Melissa says it's amazing to watch how good Natasha is at leaning over in her wheelchair to lift the baby out of whatever he's getting into.
Melissa's brother Kevin recovered from his kidney donation surgery in about two months, and then went on to get a good job with the company Melissa's husband works for, SMD.
Melissa's story ranges far beyond the subject of kidney health on which The Sun is focusing for March, but the additional challenges she has faced show the amazing interventions medical science can provide, not just to prolong life, but to restore quality of life. Melissa is cheerful, positive, productive, thankful, and happy - and although some challenges continue, she loves her life. Her husband Larry is proud of her and encourages her to tell her story and reach out to help others; and he does the same, talking to strangers who need the support that can come from someone who has faced similar difficulties.
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