COOKEVILLE — Michael Anderson is only 27, but in the last 10 years, he has been through more than a person twice his age has experienced.

At the age of 17, Michael, the son of Avery Trace Middle School principal and former city council member Alma Anderson, was diagnosed with Focal Segmental Glomerulosclerosis (FSGS), a rare disease characterized by scarring in the part of the kidney that filters blood.

“He did not have any signs or symptoms that indicated anything was wrong,” Alma said. “That summer, he had a normal physical.”

That fall, the school system implemented a health program and it was found that Michael had high blood pressure.

“Of course they contacted me and I took him to the doctor to get it checked out,” Alma recalled.

It was narrowed to the kidneys, which then took him to Vanderbilt to get tested further.

“In February of 2005, he was diagnosed with FSGS,” Alma said. “There’s no cure and treatment differs since it’s so rare.”

According to Nephcure, FSGS occurs more frequently in adults than in children and is most prevalent in adults 45 years or older. Two to four out of every 100,000 children are diagnosed with nephrotic syndrome every year, with FSGS associated with 15-20 percent of those cases.

It is the most common cause of steroid resistant nephrotic syndrome in children and the second leading cause of kidney failure in children, and males affected with FSGS are 1.5 to 2 times more likely to progress to end stage renal disease (ESRD) than FSGS-affected females.

Michael is currently in end stage renal disease — his kidneys failed in 2012 — and is on dialysis for 12 hours a day.

Shortly after Michael’s diagnosis, Melissa Blaylock came to work with Alma at Avery Trace as an aide in Alma’s room.

“I saw the pain she was going through, but she stayed strong,” Melissa, who is also a mother, said. “She was taking Michael to Vandy for treatments and dealing with a lot of other things, too.”

From that day, Melissa and Alma formed a bond.

“I told her from day one that I would give Michael a kidney,” Melissa said. “And Alma would just thank me and go on.”

But Melissa was serious.

“I knew she was serious, but I didn’t know she was that serious,” Alma said.

Despite his disease, Michael attended college and earned a degree in psychology.

Michael has been on the transplant list for two years now, a few months following his kidney failure.

Then, last September, Melissa once again told Alma she’d give Michael a kidney.

“I am serious about giving him a kidney,” Melissa told Alma. “So Alma gave me the packet of information.”

Melissa went home to talk about it with her children and husband, who fully supported her decision.

“Michael kept saying, ‘Mom, I don’t want her to do this...she has children,’” Alma said. “And I said, ‘Michael, she’s volunteering and her children are grown.’”

Melissa said she never felt like she was forced into it.

“I am doing it freely,” she said. “I love Michael...he’s like family to me.”

Not long after being tested, Melissa got the email, saying she’s a 100 percent match.

“I remember so well the day I told him,” Melissa said. “I had everything written out on note cards because I knew I’d forget something.”

She ended the conversation with a joke — what does the good kidney say to the bad kidney? I have something for you. Just set the date.

“Michael is a type O kidney,” Alma explained. “Even though it’s the universal blood type, a type O kidney has to be a type O kidney. I don’t have it, my husband doesn’t have it...nobody in my family has it.”

It’s fitting that Melissa was the match — she shares a birthday with Alma’s mother, who died shortly after Michael was diagnosed.

Over spring break, they spent some time at UT Medical Center — where the transplant will take place — and went through a number of tests.

June 10, the date of the surgery, can’t come soon enough.

With this new lease on life, Michael hopes to put his psych degree to work.

“He will no longer be on dialysis, and if all goes well, he’ll have a normal life,” Alma said with tears in her eyes. “Of course he’ll have to watch his diet, but he won’t be on machines and he’ll feel 100 percent better.”

Insurance will pay for both surgeries, but travel and medications will take a financial toll.

Visit Michael’s page at National Foundation for Transplants by visiting http://patients.transplants.org and clicking “Find a patient.” Enter “Michael Anderson, Johnson City, TN.”

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