Pop and culture superstar Selena Gomez is being hailed for her transparency after baring her kidney transplant scar for all to see — and in a swimsuit no less!
Most celebs keep their medical issues private — and who can blame them? But Selena sees the positive in sharing so that people know what she’s gone through and so both donors and recipients feel less alone. Kudos to the star.
The Selena Gomez reveal has a lot of people asking questions about kidney transplants, and some of the answers are worrisome to Selena fans. While kidney transplants have a strong success rate, it’s likely that a kidney recipient gets more than one transplant during their lifetime.
According to Kidney.org, an authority site on the subject: “Although most transplants are successful and last for many years, how long they last can vary from one person to the next. Many people will need more than one kidney transplant during a lifetime.”
That means it’s likely Selena Gomez could be bravely sharing more transplant news down the road, though there is always hope that she is the exception who needs just a single transplant.
According to the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, a site that ranks near the top of Google for kidney transplant information, “a living donor kidney functions, on average, 12 to 20 years, and a deceased donor kidney from 8 to 12 years.”
That’s because, as the Mayo Clinic explains, “Kidney transplantation can treat advanced kidney disease and kidney failure, but it is not a cure. Some forms of kidney disease may return after transplant.”
Another expectation for the patient this exceptional treatment is — again from the Mayo Clinic — is a lifetime of medication afterwards.
The Mayo Clinic explains: “Take medications the rest of your life. You’ll take a number of medications after your kidney transplant. Drugs called immunosuppressants (anti-rejection medications) help keep your immune system from attacking and rejecting your new kidney. Additional drugs help reduce the risk of other complications, such as infection, after your transplant.”
In sharing her photo, Selena wrote: “When I got my kidney transplant, I remember it being very difficult at first showing my scar. I didn’t want it to be in photos, so I wore things that would cover it up.”
But showing her scar may be the least of Selena’s challenges, as she is well aware given the history of kidney transplants. That’s why everybody is rooting for her and why seeing her facing the situation head-on is so inspiring to fans.
