Franklin Co. woman seeking kidney donor

(LAUREL, Ind.) – A Franklin County woman doesn’t want to wait until the last minute. 

38-year-old Kali Marcum was diagnosed with kidney disease when she was a young girl. 

It’s a genetic condition that has caused her mother and grandmother to pass away from it.

Her grandmother was the first successful kidney transplant patient at Christ Hospital in 1962. 

Kali says she was perfectly healthy until she contracted COVID-19 while working at a Greensburg nursing home in 2020. 

“My kidneys were functioning at 90 percent before COVID, and now just 46 percent,” Marcum said. 

Kali has also taken extensive steps to protect her health. She doesn’t drink, stays on a strict diet and has lost 90 pounds since December. 

She knows that she will need a kidney transplant in the next few years. Marcum is hoping to find a donor. 

The ideal donor will have either O+ or O- blood type. You can reach Kali to learn more by clicking here.