ROSWELL, Ga. — Larry Weissman did not know the severity of his kidney disease until it was almost too late.
In 2001, Weissman was diagnosed during a quarterly check-up for his type 2 diabetes. It came as a surprise. As an ex-jock who tried to keep in shape, he said he felt fine.
“I’m a guy. I don’t ask for directions. I feel good, right? I was feeling good,” Weissman said. “I made the very almost fatal mistake of not really paying attention.”
He experienced no symptoms — not uncommon for those with the disease, and for the next two decades, he continued to feel healthy.
But, in 2022, a nephrologist called him. The kidney specialist told Weissman his kidney function was down to around 3 percent and that he would have to come in for tests right away because his other organs may start to fail.
Weissman soon started to lose vision in his left eye, had problems with taste and had low energy.
“I was scared to death,” Weissman said. “I’m a pretty tough guy from the eastside of Cleveland, and I’m crying like a little kid. ‘This is it. You work all your life, then you die.’”
For the better part of 2022, Weissman didn’t leave the house to avoid the risk of infection — the COVID-19 pandemic was still in full swing. While at home, undergoing dialysis, he struggled to do basic things, dealt with cramps and “nuclear-powered” headaches. Weissman relied on his wife Bonnie to take care of him as he waited for a donor.
Close to three dozen people volunteered to donate a kidney to Weissman, most from Roswell, who he calls “heroes.” Turns out, one hero, and the perfect match, was his son Dave.
“It was one of the best days of my life,” Dave said. “… I’ll never forget calling my dad to tell him that the surgery was scheduled.”
While Dave had a family of his own to consider, a wife and two young kids, he…
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