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DIANE AND DAN Pischke are strong supporters of organ donation. They wear bands of support for state and national donor networks. |
By Janell Bradley
HAWKEYE – Although they met at a dance at a Rochester VFW, the dancing shoes have pretty much stayed in the closet during Dan and Diane Pischke's 15 years of marriage. Until a few weeks ago that is, when the couple happily danced three in a row at the Hawkeye Community Hall's annual New Year's Eve dance.
For 20 years, Dan lived with heart disease, which drastically reduced any strenuous activity. But last July, after 2-1/2 years on the heart transplant waiting list, the Pischkes' prayers were answered.
Following an eight to nine hour surgery at St. Mary's Hospital, Rochester, Minn., a donor heart began pumping blood to and from Dan's other organs.
When doctors showed the Pischkes Dan's diseased heart, they weren't exactly shocked at the calcification and scar tissue they saw. Physicians were able to pinpoint damage that resulted from heart attacks he sustained.
Dan's heart was so enlarged that when the donor heart was put in place, it shifted in the cavity that remained, until eventually adjusting over the next few weeks. A typical heart weighs three grams. Dan's weighed 5.8 grams.
Having had his first attack in 1990 at age 34, Dan had successive events in 1991 and 1992 which eventually resulted in quadruple bypass surgery. Over the next decade he had various procedures including the placing of several stents. In 2005, a spine stimulator was surgically placed to alleviate some of his pain.
Already on the second status heart transplant list at St. Mary's, Pischke had a pacemaker defibrillator implanted in 2008. In November 2009, he had another heart attack, which was followed by a procedure to implant anLVAD device (heart pump.) The left ventricular assist device was a bridge to a donor heart becoming available that met his tissue and blood type. The first LVAD surgery was unsuccessful and a second device was then placed just weeks later.
In June 2010, the right side of Pischke's heart became enlarged and he was showing critical signs of heart failure. He was bumped to the 1A list and 11 days later, transplanted with a donor heart.
The Pischkes chose to go on St. Mary's transplant list because it was where Dan had been doctoring for many years. He'd had the same cardiologist for 13 years and was most comfortable with medical professionals who knew his history.
In the hours before as surgeons prepared for Pischke's life-saving event, Dan admits there were moments he worried he might not awaken to see his wife again.
"He walked through the whole apartment and through the store," says Diane of the minutes from when they got the call to prepare, and the time when they left for Rochester. Dan got behind the wheel of their car to commandeer the trip. Focusing on the driving kept his mind off the 'what ifs,' he says.
Upon regaining consciousness following surgery, Pischke says his first question was, "Did I have the transplant?" He and Diane knew there was a risk the organ to be transplanted wouldn't be viable. In fact they knew one man who experienced two "dry runs."
Learning the surgery was a success, Pischke remembers having feelings of disbelief thinking, "I have a new heart!"
Because of multiple incisions in earlier surgeries and having been wired together with titanium chains screwed into his ribs, a "clam shell" procedure was used to open his chest and place the donor heart. As he questioned, "How can someone else's heart be working inside me?" there were also twinges of guilt, he said, knowing someone had died to give him life.
"We pray for the donor family," Dan says. He and his wife cried at Christmas – grateful they were still together because Dan survived yet another surgery.
Even so, "We both shed tears thinking about the family that is suffering. We're grateful for the donor family that chose to give life to someone else when they lost their loved one."
Recipients of donor organs can write a letter to the survivors of the donor. After a period of grieving has passed, letters are forwarded to the families who can then choose to contact the recipients, or not. Very little personal information is to be shared in that first letter, said Dan. He has written his letter, but will have no idea when the family of his donor heart will be contacted.
Up to 50 people can benefit when a body is donated for transplant. Of the human organs, the heart, kidneys, pancreas, lungs, liver and intestines can be transplanted. Tissue includes corneas, skin, heart valves, bone, blood vessels and connective tissue. Bone marrow/stem cells, umbilical cord blood and peripheral areas are also considered.
Dan has had two minor surgeries since his heart transplant. One was last August to repair a lymph node in his leg that was damaged during the heart transplant. The other surgery was in September, to remove the spine stimulator, no longer needed for chest pain related to his former diseased heart.
Pischke completed 36 sessions of cardiac rehabilitation at Palmer Lutheran Health Center after being released from St. Mary's. Insurance doesn't cover costs beyond 36 sessions, but Dan continues to pay out of pocket to use PLHC's services twice a week. Iowa's winters can be a barrier to those who need to exercise for their health, and Pischke prefers the indoor environment at Palmer, where he is monitored while using a treadmill.
There are some food restrictions the Pischkes are careful about. Mold spores are the biggest threat, so he's been told to avoid foods that might carry mold, such as potato skins, alfalfa sprouts, and the shaking of black pepper to season his food. Diane washes all fruits and vegetables thoroughly and changes dish cloths every other day. She also has three cutting boards to assure raw meat never comes in contact with raw vegetables.
The couple familiar to Hawkeye folks because they previously operated DanDi's variety store, could be seen enjoying strolls around town last fall, before the weather turned cold.
"I thought I would never hear those words," says Diane of her husband asking if she'd like to go for a walk around the neighborhood. The Pischkes also traveled to Branson in November and attended a Dixie Stampede show. Months before, they'd been trying to find someone else to use the reservation they'd booked because they thought Dan's poor health and being on the heart transplant list wouldn't allow them to travel.
Although Dan lives with risks of being infected with the cold or flu, he wears a mask in public places where there are people who are ill, such as nursing homes and hospitals. He's also religious about using hand sanitizer, he says.
With three children and two stepdaughters, the Pischkes look forward to enjoying times with three grandsons, and doing more dancing. Diane hopes to chronicle Dan's journey to getting a donor heart, in a scrapbook.
As for Dan, he hopes to gradually increase the amount of exercise he can tolerate to keep his new heart healthy.
"One of the first nights he was home, some friends we'd been expecting were unable to come over," says Diane. She told her husband to remind her to lock the door that leads to the street at the bottom of the stairs that lead to their apartment.
Suddenly, as the couple watched a program on television, Dan got up and walked down the stairs to lock the door himself. He walked back up the stairs without stopping to catch his breath – for what might have been the first time ever.
"I got tears in my eyes," Diane remembers. "In the six years we've lived here, he always used the freight elevator in the store to get up to or down from the apartment. He had tried it once before, but he had to stop and rest several times."
Now, the Pischkes both use the stairs. Thanks to someone who donated their heart to give someone else a chance at a healthier life.
- To date, St. Mary's Hospital (affiliated with the Mayo Clinic) has done 415 heart transplants since 1988.
- The center did 22 transplants in 2010, and 27 heart transplants in 2009.
- Of the 22 heart recipients in 2010, two were less than a year old. Fifteen recipients were ages 50-64
- As for the donors, the largest number (9) were 35-49 years of age, while 7 were ages 50-64.
- Of the 22, 11 had a Type A blood, five had Type O and four, Type B, with two people typed AB.
How can I become an organ donor?
Each organ and tissue donor saves or improves the lives of as many as 50 people. Giving the "Gift of Life" may lighten the grief of the donor's own family. Many donor families say that knowing other lives have been saved helps them cope with their tragic loss.
Get Started
- Register with your state donor registry, if available.
- Designate your decision on your driver’s license.
- Sign a donor card and carry it with you.
- Download a page of eight donor cards that you may print and sign.
- Order a free donor card that will be mailed to you.
- Talk to your Family. To help your family understand and carry out your wishes, sit down with your loved ones and tell them about your decision to be an organ and tissue donor. They can serve as your advocate and may be asked to give consent for donation or provide information to the transplant team.
To learn more visit www.organdonor.gov
