Douglas Flynn pledged a $1 million leadership gift to a new Chair in Renal Transplantation, offering tremendous support for kidney disease research. The chair will continue the important work done by Peter Nickerson and David Rush – two internationally esteemed U of M researchers who are trying to determine how to prevent the body’s immune system from rejecting kidney transplants. Their research is committed to improving outcomes for patients.

“My father received a new kidney in December 2008, so I have had the good fortune of seeing first hand, the life changing benefits of the renal program under the direction of Drs. Rush and Nickerson,” Flynn says. “I am happy to report that my father’s new kidney is functioning very well and that dialysis is a thing of the past for him. I am honored to assist the doctors and their team with their worthy efforts, so that they may continue to enhance the lives of others in the future.”

Approximately 2,000 Manitobans suffer from kidney disease, about 1,000 of whom require dialysis.