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At long last, liver patient comes home

Robb Boring
Transplant complications lasted months

FORWARD TWP — Robb Boring has a lot to be thankful for this holiday season — mainly his life.

The 38-year-old man returned to his parents' home on Rader School Road on Nov. 14 after spending more than 10 months in the hospital following a liver transplant.

Boring continues to recover from a seemingly endless line of complications with his liver stemming back to the fall of 2012, when he first began to have problems.

By May 2013, it was determined the organ was failing and he was in need of a transplant.

“The big thing was getting on the (transplant) list itself,” said Sally Boring, his mother. “Because it's not easy to do so.”

Doctors at UPMC in Pittsburgh determined Boring was suitable for a transplant, and he was added to the transplant list. But finding a donor liver became an even more difficult process.

A liver was available in June 2013, but it became unusable before surgery could be done. A liver lasts about 24 hours before it is unusable.

Later that month, doctors determined Boring's sodium levels were too high for surgery. In July, he was listed as a possible secondary candidate for a liver, but the primary patient accepted the liver. Each liver that becomes available has primary and secondary candidates to prevent it from going to waste if the primary candidate turns it down or is unable to have surgery.

In August, Boring suffered a tooth infection that took months to heal, again delaying hopes of a transplant.

By Christmas last year, doctors were telling Boring he had two days to two weeks to live without a new liver.

That's when his family received a call they will never forget.

“We got a call Dec. 26 telling us there is a liver available,” said Sally Boring. “It was the greatest day of our lives.”

Boring, who was already at UPMC to have fluid drained from his failing liver, was in surgery just hours later.“It was a Christmas miracle,” said his father, Robb Boring Sr.But while the 8-hour surgery was successful, Boring had a long road to recovery.On Jan. 11, Boring's hepatic vein broke, and he was sent to UPMC's intensive care unit.“That's when all the problems started,” Sally Boring said.Doctors tried to repair the vein, which connects the liver to the heart, multiple times. Eventually Boring had to receive a replacement vein through a transplant.“After that he had infection after infection,” Sally Boring said.He required a balloon be placed in the vein to open it up. It would be a last chance to save the donor liver.“The doctors told us he couldn't get another liver because he would never be able to withstand another surgery,” Robb Boring Sr. said.What was supposed to be a two or three week recovery in the hospital for the transplant quickly grew to months.Boring said his time in the hospital was difficult.“It was terrible,” he said, resting in his living room. “They had me on so many drugs that I was hallucinating.”Boring said he doesn't remember much about any of his surgeries or the time around them.He was on a feeding tube for the duration of his stay in the hospital. His weight dropped to just 80 pounds.But Boring has been able to recover well enough to spend the holidays at home.“I thought they were joking when they told us he could come home,” Sally Boring said. “I couldn't believe it.”His first day home Nov. 14 brought his first meal out of the hospital in nearly a year.“He ate five slices of pizza,” his mother said, laughing. “I asked him how he could eat so much.”Boring said he has lost much of his strength over the year and is now going shopping to get outside for exercise.“I'm still learning to walk again,” he said. “I'm trying to build my lungs back up.”He is looking forward to fishing next summer.Sally Boring said her son looks to be able to live a normal life once he recovers.Boring, who worked as a CNC operator in the past, may look for a similar career again.“Or he may go to college,” his mother said.But his recovery isn't complete. He will return to the hospital in January to have another surgery.But the family isn't looking too far ahead.“We've learned you have to live every day and not think about tomorrow,” Sally Boring said.The Borings thanked the friends and family in their life for helping them get through the struggle. Sally Boring said their church, St. Paul's Church in Connoquenessing, also played a huge role in helping the family both spiritually and by contributing donations.Robb Boring said faith was crucial to his recovery.“Most of all we need to thank God,” he said. “Without him, I never would have made it.”While Boring's recovery was a long one, his parents were always by his side.“We drove down every day, regardless of the weather,” Sally Boring said. “No matter how bad the roads were. We were there.”Sally Boring said she can't explain the feeling of having her son home.“It's so nice to see him smile,” she said.

Liver transplant recipient Robb Boring returned to his Forward Township home Nov. 14 after nearly a year in the hospital.

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