Watching your child graduate from high school is a rite of passage for many parents, but it’s something that almost didn’t happen for one Oklahoma man fighting chronic liver disease.
Watching your child graduate from high school is a rite of passage for many parents, but it’s something that almost didn’t happen for one Oklahoma man fighting chronic liver disease.
Tyler Strain was just 15 years old when he was first diagnosed, so he always knew one day he would most likely need transplantation. He never dreamed he would end up needing three! “I had my first liver transplant in 1990 when I was 19 years old,” recalls Tyler. “A few years later, I developed ulcerative colitis which is a disease of the colon much like Crohn's disease. I had my colon removed in 2000.”
He did well for many years after that. He got married, had two children and enjoyed living a pretty normal life. Then, in 2017, years of taking anti-rejection drugs from his liver transplant took a toll. “I started having issues with my kidney and went on dialysis. That Christmas because of an infection, I became septic and almost didn’t make it,” Tyler reveals. Both his kidney and liver were going into failure.
John Duffy, M.D., and E.N. Shea Samara, M.D., both transplant surgeons with the Nazih Zuhdi Transplant Institute at INTEGRIS Health Baptist Medical Center performed the double transplant on May 16, 2018. This time Tyler was 38 years old. “I was so sick this go around and almost 20 years older, so this recovery was a lot tougher. I was hospitalized for three months and lost half of my body weight!”
After escaping death’s grip a second time, Tyler experienced a near-fatal acute event when the cardiac artery that feeds his liver collapsed. Josiah Wagler, D.O., is a transplant surgeon at the Nazih Zuhdi Transplant Institute. “Mr. Strain was blessed to get a liver transplant as quickly and smoothly as he did because with each subsequent transplant, there are heightened challenges and risks of death due to the increasing complexity associated with the procedure.”
Tyler underwent his third liver transplant in September of 2023. “I’m hoping the third time really is the charm,” he proclaims. “I’m hoping no more transplants are necessary. I’m looking forward to being a healthy dad for my kids once again.”
“I was 12 years old when I first realized my dad was sick,” admits Tyler’s son, Noah. “He pretty much managed his condition well until then. The last two transplants had us worried. I didn’t want to imagine a life without my dad in it.”
Now almost eight months post-transplant, Tyler is feeling great. He is gaining weight and working on his balance and strength. But the best part is that he was alive and in attendance to watch Noah walk across the stage at the Deer Creek High School graduation this past weekend.
“Knowing that he was there and getting to share this moment with him is the best graduation gift anyone could ever give me,” Noah exclaims.
“It meant the world to me to get to see him graduate. There were many moments when I thought this day would not be possible,” Tyler confides. “Of course now, I’m more motivated than ever to live to see my daughter graduate and all of my kids’ milestones. I want to be there for graduations, college baseball games, weddings and grandbabies. And thanks to INTEGRIS Health, my donor families and the higher power – I will be.”
Tyler hopes his story will encourage others to consider organ donation. Oklahomans have three options to register as an organ, eye and tissue donor. Residents can sign up when renewing their driver’s license, visit LifeShareRegistry.org to sign up online, or call 800-826-LIFE (5433) and request a donor registration form.
