Martha Gallegos

I’m 63 yrs old and I was diagnosed with PKD at the age of 45. I received a successful kidney transplant in October 2020 and have been doing very well since then. Living with this disease has taught me to always feel grateful. I always face each day with the mindset that I control this illness, it doesn't control me. I make each day a beautiful day and make the best to enjoy my life. I feel very grateful that I’m still able to wake up with that mindset today.
My mother started dialysis a couple of years after she was diagnosed, at the age of 65, and received a kidney transplant after a year on dialysis. It was a great transplant, but she unfortunately passed away four months later due to other complications. My brother was also on dialysis for a year before my sister gave him the gift of life by donating one of her kidneys. It’s been 15 years and he’s started the process to get on the transplant list again. I also have a sister who’s at the same stage where she needs a kidney transplant and is being tested to be on the list as well.
Generation to generation this disease has been part of our family. The PKD Foundation supported me with information when I didn’t know where to turn.