Bob Read

Bob is fortunate to have a highly qualified medical help and support team at the Huntsman Cancer Institute and the University of Utah Health (UUH).  He wants potential partial liver donors to know they will be in exceptional hands. UUH has shared the following as a pre-qualification list for a partial liver donation from a donor.:

There are a few other, less effective treatments available to Bob currently.  With a high likelihood of disease progression, Bob’s best path forward is a transplant from a living partial liver donor.  This option will not only improve his quality of life but extend it.  Patients are eligible for deceased liver donations when they are on the UNOS transplant waitlist.  However, their MELD (model for end-stage liver disease) score determines their spot on the waitlist.  Due to the nature of Bob’s liver disease, his current MELD score is not high enough for him to receive a liver from a deceased donor.

Since June 2022, Bob has undergone two interventional radioembolizations and many drip immunotherapy treatments, which killed 90% of the cancer and temporarily improved liver function. However, his stimulated immune system caused multiple adverse events, resulting in acute kidney injury and anemia. These conditions prevent him from continuing liver cancer treatment, potentially leading to cancer growth and metastasis.

In May 2022, Bob was diagnosed with advanced liver cancer when MRI scans revealed a large tumor in the left lobe and multiple smaller ones in the right lobe. He contracted Hepatitis C at age 23 from a blood transfusion during surgery after a cycling accident, and was born with Hemochromatosis, a genetic disorder that can cause severe liver disease. Bob was successfully treated for hepatitis C in 2015, but a lifetime of chronic liver disease led to his cancer.