Alumnus found friendship and kidney donor at UC

While the University of Cincinnati’s student body had its collegiate experience disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, it was not the first time Mohamed Emlemdi, BUS ’21, had his education interrupted.

At the age of 19, as a Lindner Honors-PLUS (LHP) student at the Carl H. Lindner College of Business, Mohamed, known as Mo, was enjoying life. He valued the many LHP opportunities, including dedicated faculty and staff, specialized academic and experiential learning, and scholarship support, as well as the ability to live in an honors community during the first year.

“From the moment I stepped onto UC’s campus, I felt I could make a difference,” Mo says.

During winter break of his second year, Mo was scheduled to have his wisdom teeth removed. After discovering he had high blood pressure, the dentist delayed the procedure and sent him to the doctor for tests. The next evening, Mo’s life was upended when he learned he was in end-stage renal failure. He began dialysis immediately and was told he needed a new kidney. One kidney was no longer viable, the other was operating at five percent. 

He says it felt like a bad dream. 

“Julian was the best match and my surgeon said he was a better match than my blood relatives, something he doesn’t usually see,” Mo says. “Julian came from Springfield, Illinois, and was randomly placed as my roommate! It’s like the stars aligned, and he ended up being the one who saved my life.”

Julian and Mo had successful surgeries at UC Health in December 2018, one year after Mo’s initial diagnosis.

“I wouldn’t be here without Julian,” Mo says. “People are always telling me, ‘You’re so strong,’ and I feel like I wasn’t given a choice, it was something I had to do. The most special thing was Julian and what he did for me. That’s what took the most courage in all of this.”

The UC community continued to embrace the young men after their surgeries. A highlight was an invitation from UC President Neville G. Pinto. Mo, Julian, their families and surgeons, including Steve Woodle, MD, director of solid organ transplantation at UC Health and William A. Altemeier Professor in Research Surgery at the UC College of Medicine, attended a Cincinnati Bearcats men’s basketball game, sitting courtside with the president.

“President Pinto is an incredible person, down to earth, super nice, super empathetic,” Mo says. “He took the time to talk to my family and we felt like his top priority. It was an incredible day.”

Mo also felt supported by his scholarship and the donors providing for his education. As a Robert A. and Sandra W. Heimann Legacy Scholar, one thing he didn’t have to worry about was earning money while he was immunocompromised. 

“Trying to succeed while worrying about tuition and managing my medical condition would have been nearly impossible,” he says. “My scholarship support means so much to me.”

His experience and the relationships he established with his doctors have influenced him to consider a career in medicine and help others. Dr. Woodle, also a transplant recipient, had a keen understanding of Mo’s new reality.  

“He is really special in a lot of ways,” says Dr. Woodle. “He’s gifted and a very hard worker. It has been an honor for me to be his physician, and if you have a son, you want him to be like Mo. To me, the ultimate measure of success is that you live your life like the transplant never happened to you and he’s done that.”

“Dr. Woodle really helped by challenging me to live my life as I would despite my kidney disease,” Mo says. “Seeing that he’s had success in life after having a transplant made me think, ‘Why not get more out of life than I originally planned?’ It has been hard and is still a work in progress but using that mindset is how I’m turning this into a positive.”

Featured image at top: Mohamed Emlemdi. Photo/UC Alumni Association.