Nation’s Longest Single-Site Kidney Chain Passes 100

By Adam Pope

To date, 101 living donors have changed the lives of 101 recipients as part of the nation’s longest ongoing single-center paired kidney transplant chain, which is underway at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

On July 20, Barbara Graybeal, of Scottsboro, and Betty Griffin of Eufaula, became the 99th and 100th kidney recipients, respectively, as part of the UAB Kidney Chain.

The chain began Dec. 5, 2013, when Pelham resident and donor Paula King approached UAB about the possibility of donating a kidney to a stranger. She was committed to donating a kidney despite not having an intended recipient. In a paired transplant chain, a donation like this can set off a series in which family or friends of recipients give a kidney to another person in need – essentially paying donations forward on behalf of a loved one.King’s desire led her to the South’s leading incompatible kidney transplant program, at UAB, the outgrowth of efforts spanning 45 years and more than 10,000 transplants.

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