Donald Jones gets kidney transplant

Donald Jones has faced some scary foes on the gridiron as a wide receiver for the NFL’s Buffalo Bills. The speedy Jones played college ball for Youngstown State and made the Bills as an undrafted free agent. He played three seasons for the Bills in the tough American Football Conference before he was forced out of the game with symptoms of kidney disease. His condition quickly spiraled and he was told early on in the process that he would need to get a kidney transplant.

“Going through all of that is like, man, I’ve got nothing to lose. I’ve persevered through the worst,” Jones said this week from his hospital room at New York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center. “It’s really a blessing.”

Donald Jones didn’t have to search to far to find a compatible donor. His father and namesake Donald Jones II tested as a match and he quickly agreed to provide his son with the life saving gift of a organ donation. He had the surgery on December, 3rd and a long road of rehabilitation lies ahead for the young athlete. He’s going into that process with the best of attitudes and a unique goal. He wants to try to get his chance to break into professional baseball.

“I’m going to make a run at it,” Jones said. “I’m still young.”

Not one person who knows how tenacious Jones is on the field of play will ever doubt his ability to achieve such a goal. It simply wouldn’t be safe for him to play a contact sport such as football but he may be able to suit up for the baseball diamond.

The NBA had two players suit up after a kidney transplant. Both Sean Elliott and Alonzo Mourning were able to play in the NBA, with very good success, after the procedure.

On The Web:
Kidney transplant gives ex-NFLer a 2nd chancehttp://www.pro32.ap.org/article/kidney-transplant-gives-ex-nfler-2nd-chance