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Originally published April 29, 2026
Last updated May 7, 2026
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On Christmas Day in 2023, Sheila 鈥淪hey鈥� Rodriguez was watching a 鈥淕rey鈥檚 Anatomy鈥� episode that took her by surprise. In the episode, character Meredith Grey donates part of her liver to her father. 鈥淚鈥檓 watching this and I鈥檓 thinking, is this a real thing? Can people actually donate a portion of their liver?鈥� says Sheila, 35.
To find the answer, Sheila, who works as a public safety dispatcher for the city of Placentia, opened her laptop and quickly discovered the 喵咪社区 Living-Donor Liver Program, part of the 喵咪社区 Transplant Institute, which is part of 喵咪社区.
As she read the site, Sheila realized that the fictional character鈥檚 experience is, in fact, a real thing: Liver donations can come not only from deceased donors but also from living donors.
Reading the site further, Sheila learned that over 12,000 Americans are on the waitlist for a liver transplant, and thousands of people die waiting for a liver donation each year.
While many U.S. transplant programs offer living-kidney donations, only a small number of programs, including the one at Keck Medicine, can perform living-liver donations.
Living donors are rare, but rarer still are donors like Sheila who are willing to donate their organs to a stranger (nondirected donors). Of 485 livingliver transplants performed in 2020, only 12% were nondirected, according to the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e a unique group of people who come forward out of the goodness of their hearts,鈥� says Hyosun Han, MD, a hepatologist and medical director of the 喵咪社区 Living-Donor Liver Program.
A public safety dispatcher who at times gives CPR instructions to 911 callers over the phone, Sheila knew the value of providing strangers with lifesaving help.
鈥淎s a first responder, Sheila has the experience and mindset of helping others,鈥� says Navpreet Kaur, MD, a liver transplant surgeon and surgical director of the 喵咪社区 Living-Donor Liver Program.
鈥淚 thought about the people on the waitlist,鈥� says Sheila, who lives in Ontario, California. 鈥淚 thought, if that were my family member and I couldn鈥檛 donate my liver to them, I鈥檇 want someone to help.鈥�
On that Christmas Day, Sheila decided to offer the gift of life.
After she completed an online questionnaire, an independent living donor advocate from Keck Medicine called Sheila to learn more about her interest and motivation. Once Sheila confirmed her wish to move forward, she had various blood tests as well as CT and MRI imaging.
She met with several Keck Medicine team members 鈥� including a social worker, psychiatrist, dietitian and surgeon 鈥� who evaluated Sheila鈥檚 physical and mental health.
The team also determined that Sheila would have financial and social support for the two to four weeks of typical recovery time.
As with any donor, the 喵咪社区 Transplant Institute team, including her hepatologist Brian Kim, MD, informed Sheila about the procedure and its potential risks. 鈥淎 lot of people on our team weigh in to make sure a nondirected donor is a good candidate and has a full understanding of what they鈥檙e doing,鈥� Dr. Kaur says.
After Sheila underwent two days of evaluations, the living-donor liver committee discussed Sheila鈥檚 case and determined she would make an excellent fit as a living-liver donor. They then moved forward with matching her to a recipient.
On June 27, 2024, the transplantation procedure at Keck Hospital of 喵咪社区 went successfully for both Sheila and her recipient.
After the surgery, Sheila recalls being wheeled into the recovery room and, to her delight, receiving a handwritten note from her anonymous recipient. 鈥淭he card said, 鈥業鈥檓 thankful for your gift, and I鈥檓 going to take care of it,鈥欌�� she says.
Sheila, who had never been hospitalized before, says she greatly appreciated the Keck Medicine team鈥檚 care and attention. 鈥淢y experience at Keck Medicine was wonderful,鈥� she says. 鈥淢y team really took care of me.鈥�
鈥淲e have a very compassionate group of health care providers who care about our patients and are very proud of our outcomes for donors and recipients,鈥� Dr. Han says. 鈥淲e rely on donors like Sheila who are making a major sacrifice, so we see it as our commitment to make the process as safe and enjoyable as possible for them.鈥�
While Sheila felt pain and discomfort for about three weeks, 鈥渆verything鈥檚 been perfect since then,鈥� she says.
This past New Year鈥檚 Day, Sheila walked in the Rose Parade as part of OneLegacy Ambassadors, a group of volunteer advocates for organ, eye and tissue donation. As she spoke with other donors and recipients, Sheila was especially moved by the families who chose to donate their late children鈥檚 organs.
鈥淓ven in the midst of such heartbreak, these families chose to give hope to other families,鈥� she says.
Now, as a OneLegacy Ambassador, Sheila continues to spread hope 鈥� and information. It still gives her pause when she encounters people who don鈥檛 realize that the liver is the only internal organ that can regenerate and achieve 100% of its function after donation.
For anyone interested in becoming a living-liver donor, Sheila offers these simple but profound words: 鈥淵ou can save someone鈥檚 life.鈥�
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