VOA标准英语2009年-'Altruistic Donor' Donates Kidney at New Y

By Carolyn Weaver¹
New York
10 October 2009

An estimated 62,000 people in the United States have severe kidney failure. To lead a normal life, each needs a new kidney, preferably one transplanted from a healthy living donor². Some are lucky enough to have a family member or friend with a compatible blood type who is willing to donate. But a few will receive a kidney from a complete stranger, an "altruistic³ donor," as they're called, who has decided⁴ to undergo surgery to save the life of someone he or she may never know. Daryl Julich, from the state of Iowa, is one of those rare people. He traveled more than 1,600 kilometers to give away a kidney at New York's Presbyterian Cornell Weill Medical Center.

Daryl Julich and his wife, Sher Jasperse, have come to New York City from their home in Iowa so Julich can give one of his kidneys to a stranger. He's motivated, he says, by his Christian⁵ beliefs.

 
Altruistic donor Daryl Julich
"For me when you give something, things come back to you tenfold," he said. "It's like giving birth to a child, but I'm not giving birth to life, I'm giving quality of life to someone. And that's pretty neat."

An Internet kidney registry matched Julich with a patient whose family members can't donate to her because their blood factors aren't compatible. Julich and his wife paid for their trip to New York and will lose several weeks' pay. They expect nothing in return, but hope that Julich's gift will begin a donation "chain" that will save many lives.

Sher Jasperse explains.

"Someone who needs a kidney, they may have a family who would like to give a kidney, but is not a match for them," she said. "So, that family member makes themselves available to give to another person who needs a kidney, and then someone from that family gives to another family, and often an altruistic donor can start that process. The hope is that there will be an endless donor chain of people giving to other people."

Officials at New York Presbyterian Hospital have told Julich only that the recipient⁶ is an otherwise healthy woman, 76 years old.
 
"And they said how would you feel about that, would that deter⁷ you from giving, and I said no, not at all," he said. "We just put too much emphasis that when someone gets old they're not useful any more. That's not true."

New surgical⁸ techniques have made kidney transplants more successful, and less risky⁹ and painful for the donor. Julich's operation will require only a short incision¹⁰ in his belly¹¹ button.

 
Daryl Julich in surgery
Surgeon Joseph Del Pizzo inserts a tiny telescope into Daryl's abdomen¹², using images projected on overhead screens to guide his surgical tools. 

Once the kidney's surrounding tissue is snipped¹³ away and the arteries¹⁴ sealed off, the operating room lights go back on. The surgeon pulls the kidney through the tiny incision, and carries it in a plastic jug¹⁵ to the operating room across the hall.

There the hospital's chief of transplant surgery, Sandip Kapur, takes over. The patient is already unconscious, her abdomen opened. Unlike Julich's donor operation, this surgery requires a large incision. The operation takes about three hours.

"She'd been waiting a long time, and she's very lucky," he said. "Because she was very highly sensitized, it was very difficult to get a good match for her, and then due to a stroke of luck, she had this wonderful altruistic donor who stepped forward."

For Daryl Julich, there are several days of pain ahead, but a sense of accomplishment¹⁶.

"You know, whenever you give, you receive. I feel like I'm receiving quite a bit. It's just incredible, a gift that I can only do once," he added.

Julich and Jasperse met the recipient a week later, a day before their return to Iowa. They say the woman and her husband thanked them, and all four hugged.

A month later, the recipient's son underwent surgery at New York Presbyterian to donate one of his kidneys to a stranger, leading to more donations and, as Daryl Julich hoped, an unbroken chain.

1 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。

2 donor   

n.捐献者；赠送人；(组织、器官等的)供体

参考例句：

• In these cases,the recipient usually takes care of the donor afterwards.在这类情况下，接受捐献者以后通常会照顾捐赠者。
• The Doctor transplanted the donor's heart to Mike's chest cavity.医生将捐赠者的心脏移植进麦克的胸腔。

3 altruistic   

adj.无私的，为他人着想的

参考例句：

• It is superficial to be altruistic without feeling compassion.无慈悲之心却说利他，是为表面。
• Altruistic spirit should be cultivated by us vigorously.利他的精神是我们应该努力培养的。

4 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

5 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

6 recipient   

a.接受的,感受性强的 n.接受者,感受者,容器

参考例句：

• Please check that you have a valid email certificate for each recipient. 请检查是否对每个接收者都有有效的电子邮件证书。
• Colombia is the biggest U . S aid recipient in Latin America. 哥伦比亚是美国在拉丁美洲最大的援助对象。

7 deter   

vt.阻止，使不敢，吓住

参考例句：

• Failure did not deter us from trying it again.失败并没有能阻挡我们再次进行试验。
• Dogs can deter unwelcome intruders.狗能够阻拦不受欢迎的闯入者。

8 surgical   

adj.外科的，外科医生的，手术上的

参考例句：

• He performs the surgical operations at the Red Cross Hospital.他在红十字会医院做外科手术。
• All surgical instruments must be sterilised before use.所有的外科手术器械在使用之前，必须消毒。

9 risky   

adj.有风险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险，但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
• He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。

10 incision   

n．切口，切开

参考例句：

• The surgeon made a small incision in the patient's cornea.外科医生在病人的眼角膜上切开一个小口。
• The technique involves making a tiny incision in the skin.这项技术需要在皮肤上切一个小口。

11 belly   

n.肚子，腹部；(像肚子一样)鼓起的部分，膛

参考例句：

• The boss has a large belly.老板大腹便便。
• His eyes are bigger than his belly.他眼馋肚饱。

12 abdomen   

n.腹，下腹(胸部到腿部的部分)

参考例句：

• How to know to there is ascarid inside abdomen?怎样知道肚子里面有蛔虫？
• He was anxious about an off-and-on pain the abdomen.他因时隐时现的腹痛而焦虑。

13 snipped   

v.剪( snip的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He snipped off the corner of the packet. 他将包的一角剪了下来。 来自辞典例句
• The police officer snipped the tape and untied the hostage. 警方把胶带剪断，松绑了人质。 来自互联网

14 arteries   

n.动脉( artery的名词复数 )；干线，要道

参考例句：

• Even grafting new blood vessels in place of the diseased coronary arteries has been tried. 甚至移植新血管代替不健康的冠状动脉的方法都已经试过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• This is the place where the three main arteries of West London traffic met. 这就是伦敦西部三条主要交通干线的交汇处。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 jug   

n.(有柄，小口，可盛水等的)大壶，罐，盂

参考例句：

• He walked along with a jug poised on his head.他头上顶着一个水罐，保持着平衡往前走。
• She filled the jug with fresh water.她将水壶注满了清水。

16 accomplishment   

n.完成，成就，（pl.）造诣，技能

参考例句：

• The series of paintings is quite an accomplishment.这一系列的绘画真是了不起的成就。
• Money will be crucial to the accomplishment of our objectives.要实现我们的目标，钱是至关重要的。