In this powerful episode of Life Expectancy: Sisters Surviving and Thriving, Stacey and Julee break down the complexity of the UNOS transplant list through both lived experience and medical insight. They explain how the national system works, what MELD and PELD scores mean, and the brutal math behind liver transplant eligibility.
Julee shares the advocacy it took to get Stacey accepted after multiple rejections, while Stacey recounts the physical, emotional, and cognitive toll of end-stage liver disease and hepatic encephalopathy.
Together, they explore the logistical, ethical, and deeply personal realities of navigating a life-or-death waitlist, culminating in Stacey’s placement on the list with a MELD score of 38—just days before receiving the organ that would save her life.