Dedicated to showing Jesus' love by comforting pediatric liver donors and recipients while raising awareness about living liver donations.
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In the United States, approximately 600 to 658 living donor liver transplants are performed annually. In 2023, a new record was set with 658 living donor liver transplants according to the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN).
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In the United States, approximately 15,000 people are currently waiting for a liver transplant. While about 8,000 liver transplants are performed annually, the number of patients needing a transplant significantly exceeds the available organs according to the American Liver Foundation.
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A living-donor liver transplant is a surgery in which a portion of the liver from a healthy living person is removed and placed into someone whose liver is no longer working properly. The donor's remaining liver regrows and returns to its normal size, volume and capacity within a couple of months after the surgery. At the same time, the transplanted liver portion grows and restores normal liver function in the recipient according to the Mayo Clinic.
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Waiting for a suitable liver donor can take days, weeks, months or sometimes years. Waiting time depends largely on the degree of illness according to the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.
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The number of people waiting for a liver transplant greatly exceeds the number of available livers from deceased donors. Living-donor liver transplant offers an alternative to waiting for a deceased-donor liver according to the Mayo Clinic.
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Having a living donor also allows the recipient to avoid some possible health complications while waiting for a transplant. People who have a living-donor liver transplant seem to have fewer medical problems after the procedure than those who receive a liver from a deceased donor. A liver from a living donor also has a longer survival rate according to the Mayo Clinic.
Our Vision
Your support can bring hope and change lives. At Lil Lambs of Jesus, we are passionately dedicated to making a meaningful difference in the lives of those awaiting organ transplants. Each donation you make contributes to assisting us with covering the costs of printing our book, funding our website to spread public awareness about finding living donors and supporting families in their efforts to advertise their urgent need for donors, and as we grow, we hope to establish a page featuring a map of U.S. hospitals that perform the procedure and enabling applications with a single click.
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"The kingdom of God is like a tiny mustard seed. Though this is one of the smallest of seeds, it grows to become one of the largest plants, with long branches where birds can come and find shelter." Mark 4:30-31
〰️ "The kingdom of God is like a tiny mustard seed. Though this is one of the smallest of seeds, it grows to become one of the largest plants, with long branches where birds can come and find shelter." Mark 4:30-31
Now Available for Purchase
Our story is now available in this beautifully illustrated children’s book with a message for children and parents alike. You can purchase this book locally in Fort Dodge, Iowa exclusively at Faith Works Christian Bookstore & Boutique to get an exclusive signed author copy or at the link below.
Our Dream for the Future
Even though we live in a modern world of technology and data collection, there is still no national Living Donor registry for organ donation. Many people who are too ill to accept a deceased organ donor’s gift can often still be helped through a living donor. This is an amazing gift but one many cannot take advantage of because there is not a registry to match these living donors with those who need organ donations. Our dream is to one day see a living donor registry established to help more people! Would you join us in prayer as we explore all the facets of this enormous task and wait to see how the Lord would have us be a part of its creation?
Contact Us
Interested in learning more about living liver donations, our mission, or how you can be a part of our ministry? Please fill out a contact form. We’d love to hear from you!
Looking to have Lil Lambs of Jesus come present at your next event? Give us more info! We’d love to share who we are, what we do and how others can become living liver donors!
Not a fan of email? No problem!
Contact Kristen at (515) 297-2917