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GoogleA drop-in will be from 1 to 6 p.m. at the Wagster home, located at 504 South Greenville Street in Rector. "No gifts please," they said.
The most amazing part of his tale is that Wagster was told his new heart would give him an additional three to five years of life. He has surpassed those expectations by 20 years and continues to have a full, rewarding life.
Wagster and his wife, Frannie, knew something was not quite right with his health in 1981 when the family lived in Frasier, Mich., near Detroit. Dealing with recurring shortness of breath, Wagster believed he was merely out of shape. So, he decided to make a change.
"I started going running, thinking that would help me," Wagster said. "It turns out that was the worst thing for me. I was literally killing myself."
One day, the harsh reality of just how poor his health had become was made abundantly clear. While changing a flat tire on Frannie's car, he was nearly overcome by shortness of breath and an overall loss of strength and energy.
After a visit to the doctor, Wagster was given some somber news.
"The doctor diagnosed me with heart failure," Wagster said. "Those are two words you never want to hear the doctor use: 'heart' and 'failure.'"
Wagster's condition was causing his lungs to fill with fluid which severely limited his breathing.
Wagster underwent a series of tests in "a room with every machine that beeped and whistled."
The suddenness of everything took Wagster by surprise.
"Even though I'm a pharmacist, these kinds of things just sneak up on you. The body can adjust to all kinds of things. Mine had reached a point where it just couldn't cope."
After another volley of tests, Wagster was told the only course of action would be a heart transplant.
"Those are also words you don't want to hear: 'transplant' and 'you,'" Wagster said.
Thus, Wagster began the difficult journey from needing a transplant to actually receiving a new heart.
"They don't just give you a heart. You have to be in what they call 'end state' heart failure where you've basically got three months to live."
Wagster says this allows the patient to get the most use out of the original heart and have as much of their full life expectancy as possible in the event the transplant is unsuccessful.
By the time he approached the "end state," Wagster was having severe difficulty breathing. He spent most of his time on oxygen. He was unable to work and, as a result, lost his insurance.
It was during that time the couple moved to Rector. Wagster's father owned some properties in town and offered the family their current home on Greenville.
Wagster began seeing doctors at St. Louis University. As his condition worsened, he was advised by his local doctors to make another trip to St. Louis.
There he underwent exhaustive testing, both physically and psychologically, to determine whether his body would accept a transplant and if his mental state could cope with the procedure.
The results of the test and the announcement are still fresh in Wagster's mind.
"They told me 'congratulations, you're on the list.' I was so excited I was looking for anybody to tell."
He was advised to remain in St. Louis due to his deteriorating condition. He stayed with a cousin who lived in the area until his condition worsened to the point the hospital had him moved to auxiliary housing near the campus.
Wagster was in St. Louis for about one month before he received his new heart.
Still, the ups and downs were not over for the family. Wagster had what he calls a "false alarm" when a donor heart arrived, but was determined to be too small for use one week before he underwent successful surgery. Dr. Vallee Willman, who performed St. Louis' first successful heart transplant surgery in 1974, was able to recreate his magic in 1984, putting a new heart in Wagster's body.
Wagster would not see the surgeon again until 10 years later.
"He didn't know me at first, but I recognized him. At that time, 10 years with a heart transplant was amazing. Now, it's been 25 years. The doctors up there (St. Louis) are amazed -- and so am I."
Still, there have been some difficulties since the surgery. Last year, Wagster began suffering increased shortness of breath. After tests he was told he had a "tiny" hole in his heart. The small tear turned out to be a one-inch hole which had to be plugged. The procedure was done by transporting the "plug" through a vein in his lower body. The doctors did not have to perform open heart surgery. The improvements were immediate. Today, Wagster says he is on oxygen only about 40 percent of the time, mostly when he sleeps.
Wagster does not measure his new lease only in years. Since his heart transplant, he has been able to see his two youngest children graduate from high school, three children graduate from college, give his daughter away in marriage, celebrate the birth of seven grandchildren and welcome a great-grandchild.
"The transplant gave me all of that. Without it, I wouldn't have been around for any of it."
On June 12, Wagster will celebrate 25 years with the new heart which has given him so much. He and Frannie will take part in a celebration with their children Glen, Donna, David and Tommy and several other family members and friends in a very special party at their home Saturday, June 13.
Wagster says he was not told much about the donor whose heart beats in his chest.
"At that time, they didn't encourage contact between the families," he said. However he is eternally grateful for the gift he has received.
"It saved my life. There's no doubt about that."
Because of their own miracle, Wagster and Frannie are both organ donors.
"I don't know if any of my organs could help someone, but they're certainly welcome to them," he says with a smile. "The transplant has given me all of this. If I can do the same for someone else, I would...in a heartbeat."
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Tom Wagster was very lucky to get a Heart transplant. Over half of the 100,000 Americans on the national waiting list will die before they get a transplant. Most of these deaths are needless. Americans bury or cremate 20,000 transplantable organs every year.
There is a simple way to put a big dent in the organ shortage -- give donated organs first to people who have agreed to donate their own organs when they die.
Giving organs first to organ donors will convince more people to register as organ donors. It will also make the organ allocation system fairer. People who aren't prepared to share the gift of life should go to the back of the transplant waiting list as long as there is a shortage of organs.
Anyone who wants to donate their organs to others who have agreed to donate theirs can join LifeSharers. LifeSharers is a non-profit network of organ donors who agree to offer their organs first to other organ donors when they die. Membership is free at www.lifesharers.org or by calling 1-888-ORGAN88. There is no age limit, parents can enroll their minor children, and no one is excluded due to any pre-existing medical condition. LifeSharers has over 12,000 members, including 61 members in Arkansas.
Please contact me - Dave Undis, Executive Director of LifeSharers - if your readers would like to learn more about our innovative approach to increasing the number of organ donors. I can arrange interviews with some of our local members if you're interested. My email address is daveundis@lifesharers.org. My phone number is 615-351-8622.
David Undis has been trying to promote organ donation through fear. Either register to be a donor, he says, or go to the back of the line if you need a transplant. He would like for you to join his organ donor club, promising preferential access to the organs of other Lifesharers club members. His promises are empty.
In more than six years of trying, Mr. Undis has signed up a little more than 12,000 members to his organ donor club, while those of us in the legitimate organ recovery and allocation system have registered nearly 82 million Americans. They have registered, not out of fear, but because they believe that can help others, without any strings attached.
David Undis and Lifesharers have no credibility with the thousands of big-hearted professionals across the country who go to work everyday to save lives.
If Mr. Undis was really interested in saving lives, he would encourage Americans to go to www.donatelife.net and find out how to register as organ & tissue donors on their official state registry.
Phil Van Stavern
Director of Communications
LifeShare of Oklahoma
(21-year kidney recipient)
There is nothing empty about LifeSharers' promise to increase your chance of getting a transplant if you join LifeSharers. Our members will give you preferred access to their organs if you will reciprocate. Natalie Cole, the famous singer, recently received a kidney through the same process LifeSharers uses.
LifeSharers is an organ donor registry as defined under the 2006 Uniform Anatomical Gift Act, which has been enacted in 37 states (including Arkansas and Oklahoma) and the District of Columbia. Under the 2006 UAGA, organ procurement organizations are required to check the LifeSharers registry whenever a hospital refers a potential donor to them.
It's surprising that Mr. Van Stavern criticizes any effort to increase the number of organ donors, given that over 8,000 Americans die every year because there aren't enough people donating. He should welcome every donor, no matter why they sign up or who they sign up with.