Pierce was born in Buffalo, NY with CAKUT (Congenital Anomalies of the Kidney and Urinary Tract), which required him to be on dialysis since birth. A year later he found himself at childrenspgh for a kidney transplant evaluation, during which a routine ultrasound discovered two tumors on his liver. After the removal of both tumors, and successful rounds of chemotherapy, the family restarted their kidney transplantation journey at UPMC Children’s. “After talking with a few local families about living-donor kidney transplant, we didn’t want to go anywhere else,” said Valerie, Pierce’s mother. After evaluation, Pierce received his father’s kidney in December 2021. “We are planning our first family vacation this summer to the beach. Since both of my children haven’t seen the beach yet, this will be very special for us.” #livingdonor #kidneydonor #kidneytransplant #donatelife