Former Ottawa nurse in liver failure after accidental needle prick
Former Ottawa nurse Pam Hopkins-Dargavel is seriously ill. Her liver is failing because of an accidental needle prick 32 years ago. She is in desperate need of a liver transplant and a living donor could make all the difference.
“It’s more difficult than I ever dreamt it would be,” says Hopkins-Dargavel. “I had a very sick patient that needed the needle capped very quickly. And I put it right through my hand.”
The patient was a hemophiliac who received Hepatitis C tainted blood, which was then transferred to Hopkins-Dargavel.
Her most recent treatment for Hepatitis C was successful, but her liver is too severely damaged to recover.
“So our hope was once she kicked the Hep C there would be enough good liver for the liver to regenerate and go back to normal liver function,” says her husband Greg. “However, the psoriatic liver has so much scaring in it, that the liver can’t do its own self healing.”
For the past six months, Hopkins-Dargavel has been undergoing full blood transfusions every month. Extremely tired, she sleeps most of the day.
“She now has the liver of a 95-year-old alcoholic, despite the fact she was never a drinker,” says Greg.
Hopkins-Dargavel desperately needs a liver transplant, hopefully from a live donor.
“But unfortunately, I have a very rare blood type,” says Hopkins-Dargavel.
That blood type is B, which means she can only accept a liver from anyone with blood type O+, O-, B+ or B- between the ages of 16 and 60 and in good health. The donor does not need to be a relative or the same ethnicity.
Heather Badenoch is a living liver donor. Four years ago, she donated 22 per cent of her liver to save a child’s life.
“I had a terrific recovery, and life for me was basically back to normal within a month,” says Badenoch. “My own liver, following donation, would start regrowing on day two, full function by day 10, and was back to full volume within weeks.”
Pam and Greg are avid sailors and they are hoping a transplant will get them back on the water, with the wind in their sails, doing what they love.
“I’m hoping to get a transplant and to get back to some of my physical activities,” says Hopkins-Dargavel.
If you’d like to help, you can visit the public Facebook page for Pam’s search for a donor or the University Health Network’s Living Liver Donor Program.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Montreal doctors' breakthrough discovery about causes of cerebral palsy giving hope
A breakthrough discovery made by doctors at the Montreal Children's Hospital about the causes of cerebral palsy is giving new hope to one West Island family.
Weather alerts issued for 7 provinces, 1 territory
Warnings of up to 60 millimetres of rain and other alerts have been issued for seven Canadian provinces and one territory ahead of the Easter weekend.
Ontario homeowner on the hook for $27,000 when contractor severed power line
An Ontario man who built a garage on his property has been locked in a battle with his electricity provider for a year and half over a severed power line.
He didn't trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
Jameek Lowery was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
Why Kim Kardashian is being sued for 'knockoff' furniture
The estate of minimalist contemporary artist Donald Judd filed a lawsuit against Kardashian this week, claiming the fashion and beauty mogul promoted 'cheap knockoffs' of his furniture designs.
Where is the worst place for allergy sufferers in Canada?
The spring allergy season has started early in many parts of Canada, with high levels of pollen in some cities already. Experts weigh in on which areas have it worse so far this season.
Louis Gossett Jr., 1st Black man to win supporting actor Oscar, dies at 87
Louis Gossett Jr., the first Black man to win a supporting actor Oscar and an Emmy winner for his role in the seminal TV miniseries 'Roots,' has died. He was 87.