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CREAM RIDGE, NJ – Dr. Karen Aitken-Douyon, affectionately known as “Dr. Kaye,” recently celebrated the 14th anniversary of the first of two successful kidney transplants that saved her life, reflecting on her journey of resilience, faith and commitment to organ donation.

With Dr. Kaye, a pediatric and school physical therapist, was diagnosed with systemic lupus erythematosus (lupus) in her late 20s. The autoimmune disease affected her kidneys and led to kidney failure following a pulmonary embolism in 2010. She began peritoneal dialysis, but her life changed dramatically when her best friend, Dr. Dale Coffin, 2010 after Dr. Kaye’s husband Pierre donated a kidney to Douyon and was found incompatible. The successful transplant gave her a “new life”.

In the following years, Dr. Kaye returned to school and earned three more degrees while continuing her professional career. But in 2015, another embolism caused her transplanted kidney to fail, leaving her on dialysis for over seven years before receiving her second kidney transplant from a deceased donor in October 2023.

“Health challenges have tested my resolve, but I have never lost hope,” said Dr. Kaye, who credits her strong faith and support from her family and friends. Today, she serves as a volunteer mentor, encourages others to consider organ and tissue donation, and guides patients through dialysis decisions.

Despite her health problems, Dr. Kaye has excelled in her career, earning five academic degrees, including a doctorate in physical therapy, and dedicating her work to improving the quality of life of her patients.

“I hope and pray that my story of how the selfless acts of two people changed my life will motivate at least one person to consider registering as an organ and tissue donor,” she said.