Dan has his new kidney

Suzie Harrison

At 26, life-long Laguna Beach resident Dan Stafford would have

preferred to be surfing or traveling. But that all came to a halt for

him on Halloween night 2003.

Stafford, who was feeling ill and noticed his skin was turning

yellow, was rushed to the emergency room where he found out he was

suffering from kidney failure and was in desperate need of a

transplant. On Aug. 3 Stafford had the transplant he needed.

“There are people out there that are givers, and I feel like my

donor is an angel to me and pretty much saved my life,” Stafford

said.

Stafford’s donor is Tiana Bryant, 25, of San Clemente. Her dad

owns the Coyote Grill in Laguna, where she works as a waitress.

Bryant found out about Stafford’s need for a transplant after reading

the Coastline Pilot in December, 2003.

“She saw the clip [James] Pribram wrote ... that I was in need of

a transplant,” Stafford said. “She donates blood regularly, and had

thought about donating. She did research for a week and made up her

mind and called me.”

Bryant called Stafford’s house and left a message.

“Our surgery went really well because we’re both young and fit,”

Stafford said. “I went in on Tuesday and was out Friday. She left

[the hospital] Thursday and donors usually stay longer, and it’s more

painful.”

Although it’s been just over a week since the transplant, Stafford

said he feels a lot better. His color is coming back.

“The process from here is that I’m doing labs three days a week to

watch my levels,” Stafford said. “My kidney function is good already

and I haven’t done dialysis since surgery.”

With a deceased donor, he would have needed to do more dialysis --

at least two to four weeks after the transplant. He said with a live

donor “they pretty much drop it in you,” and within an hour or so it

starts working.

“Instantly you’re healthier and it has a higher success rate,”

Stafford said.

As for being able to enjoy his passion, surfing, he said he will

surf again someday.

“I should be able to go in the water by spring, but not after it

rains,” Stafford said. “I have to make sure the water is clean.

“My immune system is low because of immune-suppressive drugs, and

any infection could be [dangerous],” Stafford said. “I have to be on

the down-low for the first six months.”

He takes 45 pills a day for now, and then will go down to three

pills a day for the rest of his life.

“I’m hoping it [the kidney] will last 20 years, some last five

years, it may last forever -- you never know depending on how well I

take care of myself,” Stafford said. “I’m pretty dialed in to what I

need to do. Definitely health is always on my mind, and what I went

through ... I definitely don’t want to do [it again].”