Michael Angevine never imagined that at just 42 years old, he would hope for the generosity of a stranger to save his life. The Glen Cove High School graduate and lifelong resident is battling end-stage liver disease, and because of complications with his heart, he no longer qualifies for a deceased donor transplant. His only chance for survival is finding someone willing to donate a portion of his or her liver.
“I have a really hard time asking for help, but I can’t be afraid anymore,” Angevine wrote in a recent Facebook post. “I’m only 42 years old, and I don’t want to pass away at this time.”
His health struggles began in 2011, when he was hospitalized with severe pancreatitis. He spent weeks in the hospital, including Thanksgiving and Christmas, and, looking back now, he believes that was when doctors could have caught his liver condition.
“Fatty liver was written right there in my reports,” Angevine said. “If they had checked me for it, I might have been able to reverse the disease.”
By 2014, a biopsy confirmed cirrhosis, permanent scarring of the liver. At the time, doctors told him he had about 10 years before his health would begin to unravel. Almost to the day, Angevine said, their prediction came true.
Once a district manager for Sleepy’s, Angevine was forced to stop working by his illness.
Determined not to give up, he returned to school, earning a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s in social work from Adelphi University. He worked briefly as a social worker to evaluate safety in homes where dementia caregivers will work before worsening symptoms forced him to step away in 2016.
Now his daily life is a struggle. He battles swelling in his legs that makes it difficult to walk, as well as painful fluid buildup in his abdomen. At one point doctors drained 14 liters of fluid, and he has memory issues caused by one of several medications that his liver can no longer process.
“The scariest part for me is the thought of losing my memory,” he said. “I used to read two to three books a week, and now I can’t get through a paragraph without rereading it.”
Last year Angevine experienced both hope and heartbreak when NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital called to say that a liver was available, but his cardiologist determined that he wasn’t healthy enough to survive the major surgery of a deceased donor transplant. His best chance is a living donor transplant, in which a healthy person donates part of their liver, which regenerates in a matter of months.
“A healthy individual could donate half of their liver,” Dr. David Milkes, a gastroenterologist who has treated Angevine since 2011, said. “The donor’s liver grows back, and the recipient gains a functioning liver. By three to six months, most donors are back to their normal lives.”
Angevine, whose blood type is A-negative, acknowledges the severity of his situation. But he also knows that hospitals offer “swap” programs, in which an incompatible donor can still help by being matched to another recipient, initiating a chain of donations that benefits multiple patients.
For his parents, the wait is agonizing. His father, Daniel, who taught math at Glen Cove High School for three decades and is now retired, and his mother, Elizabeth, have watched their son’s health decline year after year.
“It’s very hard seeing him suffer all the time,” his mother said. “One day he can do a few things, and the next day he can’t even get up.”
Angevine said that his illness has left him isolated, as many longtime friends have drifted away, unable to cope with his daily struggles. Still, he maintains hope. “I forgot what normal feels like,” he said. “And I would love to feel it again.”
According to the American Society of Transplantation, more than 10,500 people in the U.S. are currently waiting for liver transplants.
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, like Angevine’s, is now the leading culprit, surpassing hepatitis C. Each day a patient waits increases the risk of life-threatening complications such as bleeding, sepsis or encephalopathy.
Angevine’s doctors estimate that without a transplant, his life expectancy may only be a few years. “Every day is a risk,” Milkes said. “The earlier you can get a transplant, the better.”
Potential donors can learn more and begin the confidential screening process by visiting Angevine’s Linktree website: linktr.ee/mikeangevine
“Even if you don’t match my blood type, you can participate in the swap program,” Angevine said. “That person could save my life.”
