This Saskatoon woman needs a kidney. Do you have a 'spare' you could share?
Debbie Onishenko says it is important for people to know that they can lend a hand by becoming an organ donor
A Saskatoon woman's plea to find an organ donor has drawn more attention than she ever believed possible.
Debbie Onishenko has been diabetic since she was 13 years old. The disease has now affected her kidneys, causing her to require dialysis.
Now she's asking the public a simple question: do you have a kidney you could spare?
"For myself, it would be life changing if I could get a kidney. It would just mean I would have a life again," Onishenko told CBC News in an interview.
Her red car has drawn eyes in Saskatoon thanks to a bold attempt to get the public's attention.
On the rear window of the vehicle, the phrase "Kidney Needed Type O, 306-249-1971, Share Your Spare" is displayed.
"I'm hoping that it brings awareness again to donating because sometimes people forget and get on with their lives and don't think about these things and how important they are," she said.
A small but lengthy wait list
According to the Saskatchewan Ministry of Health, 57 people were waiting for a kidney from a deceased donor transplant as of July 31, while one person was waiting for a living donor transplant.
The average patient will wait about 2.8 years before they get a kidney.
Onishenko says the stats show why it is important for people in the province to know that they can lend a hand.
You can become an organ donor and assist someone in need after death, or in the case of a kidney, choose to donate one of the two you have.
"Everyone can live off of one kidney and a live donor has to be someone who is willing to do this on their own and come forward to help someone," she told CBC's Saskatoon Morning earlier this week.
WATCH| Saskatoon woman uses car ad in hopes of finding kidney donor
For Onishenko, every day is getting harder, as she only has about nine per cent kidney function.
"I'm very weak and getting weaker all the time and kind of miss doing a lot of the things I'd like to do because I just don't have the strength to do them anymore," she said.
Her friends and family have been supportive and recently she's been buoyed by the attention her advertisement has garnered.
She says other people also waiting for kidneys or other organs have been calling and lauding her attempt to make the problem more visible.
"It's honestly hard to talk to people about saying, 'can you give me a kidney?' It has to be their choice and what they want to do," Onishenko said.
Other callers have been inspired to get tested to see if they were a possible match with her.
The "Type O" is Onishenko's blood type, and it's the first step to see if an organ could be compatible with her body.
She says every additional person that comes forward means there is a better chance to find a potential match.
Onishenko can't take all the credit for her attempt to get attention. She says she adapted it from campaigns that have cropped up across Canada.
LISTEN| A Saskatoon woman in need of a kidney is using her car's rear windshield as a mobile advertisement
The phrasing is almost identical to the plea used by a man in New Brunswick in 2018.
She hopes more people become aware about organ donation and appreciate what they have.
"I just want people to know that health is the most important thing in your life. So it's very precious. So take care of it," she said.
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With files from CBC's Saskatoon Morning