Nancy Douglass

Nancy Douglass, an inspiring therapist and social worker, has spent her life helping others who struggle with drug and alcohol issues, chronic illness, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder. During her career, Nancy was diagnosed with PSC, a rare liver disease. After her diagnosis, Nancy was informed she had three months to live and enrolled in a trial test for a medicine called FK 506.

Given Nancy’s passion to help others, she continued to work throughout the trial process. Every Monday, Nancy was tested in the morning, would attend work for the day, and returned later in the evening to discuss the efficacy of the new drug. Five years after the study, the drug, now known as Tacrolimus, was approved by the FDA. Still in need of a liver, Nancy’s health was declining and she underwent a TIPS procedure after her esophagus burst.

After Nancy’s procedure, she was on the transplant list for six years. One day in the early hours of the morning, Nancy received a call from the hospital stating they had a liver for her. Her family rushed to the hospital under a two-hour notice. After the 25-hour surgery and many setbacks, Nancy is now a strong and caring therapist who continues her impactful work with helping others.

Thanks to her donor and the phenomenal surgeons, Nancy cherishes every minute of every day and considers herself “one of the very lucky ones”. Nancy’s shares that her ability to help others throughout her career could not have been achieved without her organ donor. She expresses lifelong gratitude to her donor family, and shares, “Organ donation saved my life so I can help others in times of deep distress. How thankful I am to be able to help them and provide therapy to special education students.”

Register today to be an organ donor and your story goes on and on.