Sharing bloodlines, now sharing organs  

The bond of a brother and sister — and the community at large — in a fight to save a life   

By Michelle Mercure    
Posted 1/29/25

Melissa starts her day with her fiancé, Brian, focusing on yoga and meditation. For a year now, her sister Kim has attended all her chemotherapy treatments and cooked for her afterwards, as …

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Sharing bloodlines, now sharing organs  

The bond of a brother and sister — and the community at large — in a fight to save a life   

Posted

Melissa starts her day with her fiancé, Brian, focusing on yoga and meditation. For a year now, her sister Kim has attended all her chemotherapy treatments and cooked for her afterwards, as 16-hour days spent undergoing chemotherapy made it impossible for her to do so on her own.

After receiving a rare cancer diagnosis in 2023, her health became a top priority. She remains positive because her mother, father, siblings and other family members, co-workers, friends — her community — have supported her every step of the way. 

Finding out she had a rare cancer at a young age wasn’t going to destroy her life, especially with her family behind her, helping her find a path toward healing. Her mom, Mindy, immediately began advocating for her daughter. 

The cancer began as stomach pain, and after three requests for a CT scan and two trips to the emergency room, an x-ray revealed there was a tumor in her liver. She was diagnosed with Stage 4 intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, a rare and aggressive cancer that originates in the bile ducts inside the liver and grows rapidly — meaning constant therapy is needed to keep it stable.  

There are different types of transplants that can be done for Melissa. She was first accepted to the deceased donor list for a transplant, but a living donor transplant is her best option. This is where her brother, Mike, comes in. 

Mike is set to donate a portion of his liver to Melissa on Feb. 4. He and his wife will relocate to Texas for the surgery, leaving their son and pets behind with family. 

“All the wheels are turning,” Mindy said, describing the process of getting insurance approval, ensuring Mike is approved as a donor, arranging for Melissa to move to Texas, completing exploratory surgeries, and making preliminary provisions for caregivers for both Mike and Melissa in Houston, where the surgery will take place. 

Coming back to Newport 
The plan is for Melissa to return to Newport after the surgery, though the healing process will take some time. She has never stopped hiking, swimming, doing yoga, and living life through all the chemotherapy. Her family, friends, and outside support have provided her the energy to keep going. 

Her two strongest supporters are her mother and father. While her mother has handled all the tedious paperwork and phone calls related to her medical care, her father has shared an endless supply of positive energy with Melissa.

“I navigate all her medical for her,” Mindy said. Not having to focus on these tasks has allowed Melissa to concentrate on healing. Her sister, Kim, has switched to part-time work to help manage Melissa’s meals. And her brother is about to donate part of his liver to her. 

It’s not just family supporting Melissa. Her employer has allowed her to keep her job as a project manager at Ocean Hour Farm by permitting her to work remotely, something very important to Melissa. Her mom stated, “All of my kids hate missing work.” Even so, her sister Kim has had to miss work to care for Melissa, and her brother Mike will be out of work for the surgery. Mindy added, “I am proud of my kids. They’ve all come together to make this miracle happen.” 

The support of the community has not gone unnoticed by Mindy, either. She shared, “The people coming out of the woodwork to help has been amazing.” There have been a few GoFundMe’s set up in order to make this miracle possible. The latest one is to help support all the things insurance will not cover for the transplant to happen, including aftercare, copays and travel expenses, especially for Mike who will be donating part of his liver to his sister.  

Editor’s note: The latest GoFundMe campaign can be found by searching Support Mike and Melissa’s Transplant Journey.

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Jim McGaw

A lifelong Portsmouth resident, Jim graduated from Portsmouth High School in 1982 and earned a journalism degree from the University of Rhode Island in 1986. He's worked two different stints at East Bay Newspapers, for a total of 18 years with the company so far. When not running all over town bringing you the news from Portsmouth, Jim listens to lots and lots and lots of music, watches obscure silent films from the '20s and usually has three books going at once. He also loves to cook crazy New Orleans dishes for his wife of 25 years, Michelle, and their two sons, Jake and Max.