NEW YORK (PIX11) -- While most brothers tend to have a lot in common, Jared and Cameron Wohl of Morris Plains, N.J. share the greatest bond of all – a liver.
Diagnosed at 13 with a rare autoimmune disease that primarily affected his liver, Cameron’s condition took a turn for the worse in the summer of 2013 when a liver transplant became the only option.
“You always think ‘well not me, it’s not gonna be me’ but I was one of those many people waiting for a liver,” Wohl told PIX11 News.
Cameron found himself on an organ waiting list, a list that sees 18 Americans die each day waiting for an organ. Shockingly enough, a new person is added every 10 minutes.
“I would be lying if I said there weren’t times that I felt like giving up but the light at the end of the tunnel was that things do happen for a reason.”
That light came in the form of older brother Jared who stepped up to the plate, offering up 65% of his liver after he was approved to be a living donor to Cameron.
A decision he says he didn’t think twice about.
“It just speaks to the testament of unity and love and what family is truly meant to embody which is this act of selflessness,” Jared Wohl told PIX11 News.
On February 11, 2014, the brothers underwent a successful liver transplant at New York-Presbyterian Hospital.
It’s a journey they documented on film -- appropriately titled “65 Percent” -- all in an effort to start a conversation on organ donation and to prove that “We Are Vital to Each other” – an acronym for their movement.
“It’s been my experience that if you really want to connect with individuals, you have to let your guard down and literally bring them into your experience,” explained Jared Wohl, on why they put their story out there. “Let them experience it with you.”
After a year that could be described as pretty eventful, Cameron can’t help but reflect.
“A year ago today they found a tumor on my liver that expedited the transplant,” he said. “Now today we’re in our post production stages of the film. It’s amazing.”
What a difference a year makes for the brothers from Morris Plains and it’s their message that they hope sheds light and changes the world.
“This can affect anyone at any point in their lives and people need to learn about before that time of tragedy,” Jared Wohl said.
For more information on the Wave Set, visit their website.
Watch the trailer for their documentary “65 Percent” below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yE28bZi7_Ms
Source: http://pix11.com/2014/08/26/nj-man-gives-brother-second-chance-at-life-with-liver-transplant/
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