Oncology nurse gives her liver to save father after harrowing diagnosis

A San Diego man diagnosed with liver cancer needed a liver transplant and found a nurse who was willing to donate a portion of her liver … that nurse happened to be his daughter.

In October 2022, Tom Duncan went to the emergency room for a kidney stone, and tests revealed 13 lesions on his liver, according to KGTV.

Duncan went through chemotherapy, surgeries and liver treatments, but after years of all that, the cancer kept returning. It was a dim look for the father who had been exercising and climbing mountains with his daughter.

Last year, doctors gave him the option of a liver transplant. His daughter, Kelly, had an exact match, and she agreed to help to save her father.

“It went from something that I deal with at work to something that I was dealing with now at home,” Kelly told KGTV. She is an oncology nurse at Scripps Cancer Clinic in La Jolla.

Kelly underwent surgery with Tom in the Strong Memorial Hospital at the University of Rochester. A photo shows the two in hospital gowns, smiling large for the camera — Tom in a hospital bed while Kelly stands over him.

All the medical efforts came as Kelly said she was going through big life decisions, such as getting married and moving.

The transplant was a success and Tom is cancer-free. Kelly said the decision was worth it.

“Honestly, one day I had the thought of like if this didn’t happen, what our lives would look like, and that to me was way more scary than the surgery itself, so it was a pretty easy decision for me,” Kelly said.

Tom said he was grateful.

“Without crying, um, just thank you, and I love you, and just trying to make this liver go as long as I can make it last,” he told Kelly with emotion in his voice.

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