Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 32, Number 5, 1 May 2015 — Boise State football standout to receive kidney transplant from twin sister [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Boise State football standout to receive kidney transplant from twin sister

By Lisa Asato Fraternal twins Jeremy and Jasmine Ioane have always been close. Best friends, the Hawaiian-Samoan siblings share a love of sports and a natural competitiveness -jockeying to see who could be the better student-athlete at Punahou School - he in football and baseball, and she in softball. On May 5, that bond between twins will be further forged when Jeremy, 23, receives a kidney from Jasmine. The kidney transplant will be done at the University of Utah. In 2014, Jeremy - one of the nation's top defensive backs - was playing his senior year of football at Boise State University - all the while getting dialysis to treat a kidney disease that was diagnosed his sophomore year through a random drug test. He continued playing his sophomore and junior years, factoring in chemotherapy and medication into his routine but feeling relatively fine. "Going into my senior year, that summer is when I started to notice symptoms of swelling in my legs and my lower body, and that's when we ran more tests and found

that my kidney functions were actually getting worse and that's when they decided I had to go to dialysis," Jeremy said by phone before going to a four-hour treatment at Windward Dialysis Center in Kāne'ohe that aftemoon.

A Boise resident, Jeremy was diagnosed with a kidney disease known as IgA nephropathy in whieh the antibody called immunoglobulin A, or IgA, collects in the kidney, reducing its ability to filter waste and other materials. The disease sapped him of energy, ending his senior season early and dashing his hopes of playing in the NFL. Jasmine says it was hard seeing her brother, who's always been so athletic, heeome so tired and unahle to compete. "It hurt me seeing him like that because going into his senior year,

we all knew he was ready to 'hall out' for his senior year and everything just happened so fast. And it was really sad. I had wished that it was me that had to go through that instead of him," said Jasmine, who will graduate May 1 fromUtah's Weber State University,

where she played sottball. At first, it was difficult for Jeremy to accept that Jasmine wanted to be the one to donate her kidney to him, but he eame around to the idea through time and talking with others who have gone through transplants, she said. And bv the time she 20t the

eall that she was approved as a donor, he had eome to accept it. "My sister being my donor, it's crazy to think that because we grew up with eaeh other," Jeremy said. "We've been around eaeh other forever. She's like my best friend. Having her be my donor, it means the world to me and it's like my own sister giving me new life." For Jasmine, she saiddoesn't see donating her kidney to her brother as a sacrifice. "I don't SEE TRANSPALNT ON PAGE 13

My sister being my donor, it's crazy to think that because we grew up with eaeh other. We've been around eaeh other forever. She's like my best friend. " — JeremyIoane

<MAULI OLA v www.oha.org/kwo | kwo@OHA.org HEALĪH / NATIVE HAWAIIAN » NEWS | FEATURES | EVENTS

Jasmine loane, right, watched brother Jeremy play on Senior Night at Boise State University on Nov. 29, 201 4. He made a solo tackle in a 50-1 9 win over Utah State. - Courtesy: loane family

TRAN8PLANT Continued from page 10

know how to describe it," she said by phone fromOgden, Utah. "I just knew in my heart that it was the right decision for me, or the right thing for me to do for my brother." "It feels awesome," she said. "I feel really good that I get to help him somehow." Jasmine says one of the things she's most looking forward to is seeing her brother have more energy to play with his son, Raydor, his 2-year-old with girlfriend Brynne. Jeremy say s his parents, Doris and Matthew, have been tremendously supportive as he has navigated life since being diagnosed. "When it all started out it was pretty rough making the decision about doing dialysis and deciding whether or not I wanted to eonhnue playing football. They were there for me, supporting me through that," he said, adding, "They show their love through the things they

do. Could be the little things or the biggest things. (They show) that family is important and they're always there for you." Jeremy anticipates spending one to two months in Utah before returning home to Boise. His career plans still swirl around football, but now he wants to eoaeh at the eollege level. And he said he's happy if his story helps bring awareness to kidney disease and transplants. "I think it's important for not only people that are going through the same situation as me," he said, "but brings awareness to donors as well and how important it ean be for them to help someone else's life." To help with medical expenses, Boise State Athletics and Jeremy Ioane have established a Jeremy Ioane Medical Fund online at youcaring.com. It has raised more than $75,000 as of April 24. ■ Tlns is thefirst in a seri.es ofstori.es hi.ghīighting Hawai.i.ans and ki.dney di.se ase.

j 'ĀINA ^ > LAND AND WATER /