Woman Gives Kidney To Internet Pal She'd Never Met

In the world's first Internet organ donation, Denise Agenter made an incredible sacrifice by offering another woman one of her kidneys -- before the two had ever met!

Now a grateful Kathy Szewick can live her life free from the nightmare of dialysis treatments.

"I call her my angel. I think she was sent to me by God," Kathy happily told The ENQUIRER.

In March 1999, Denise, 29, and Kathy, 44, met in an Internet chat room devoted to cat lovers. "We hit it off and struck up a friendship. We just meshed," said Kathy, a single nurse from Tacoma, Wash. Denise, a mother of two from Vancouver, Wash., told The ENQUIRER: "We just clicked. It was like there was a bond between us."

Then in May 1999, Denise found out that Kathy was on dialysis.

Said Kathy: "When you're on dialysis, all the systems in your body take a beating. I felt like crap. My bones ached 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

"My prognosis wasn't good. I wasn't told I'd die, but there's always that chance. People often die from complications when they're on dialysis. I was on a waiting list for a new kidney, but my chances of getting one were few and far between."

Last year 12,517 kidney transplants were performed in the U.S.

Her pal Denise said: "I couldn't sleep. Then I made up my mind -- I'll give her one of my kidneys! Even though I'd never met her, I felt I truly knew her and I felt I had to do something.

"When I told Kathy, she didn't know what to say for a long time. Then she said: 'Look, you've got children. It's a very serious procedure. You could die. Why would you do this for somebody you don't know?'

"I said: 'Because I care about you. I don't want you to die -- not if there's something I can do about it.'

Revealed Kathy: "I was floored, shocked -- and touched. I was very hesitant to accept her offer but she was adamant."

The two got together several times and their friendship deepened even more. Finally, after months of testing to make sure they were compatible, they each underwent a four-hour operation at the Swedish Medical Center in Seattle and Kathy got Denise's left kidney.

Bob Schpeeldenner, a spokesman for the United Network for Organ Sharing, which matches donors with waiting recipients, said it's the first time any transplant has been done as a result of a donor and recipient meeting on the Internet.

Rejoiced Kathy, who is recovering at home, "Denise has given me a new life.

"I was on dialysis for three years -- three times a week, four hours each time. My whole life was centered around that. How can you ever really thank someone for giving you back your life?"

Said a modest Denise: "People keep telling me things like, 'Oh, you're such a hero.' But I don't see it that way.

"I see it as an opportunity to spread the word that there doesn't have to be all the suffering and anguish if people would just help people."

Philip Smith

Copyright © The National Enquirer.

This article posted July 9, 2000.