Westchester woman on mission to help Broadway star find kidney

Kim Constantinesco told News 12 she gave Jamal Shuriah a kidney in 2020 after Shuriah had been fighting a rare kidney disease since 2017.

Veronica Jean Seltzer and Rob Taub

Aug 3, 2023, 7:29 AM

Updated 493 days ago

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A Westchester woman has made it her mission to help a Broadway star find a kidney.
Kim Constantinesco told News 12 she gave Jamal Shuriah a kidney in 2020 after Shuriah had been fighting a rare kidney disease since 2017.
"In 2020 there was so much life lost, and I ultimately wanted to give life,” said Constantinesco.
Shuriah had many donors back out in the years prior until Constantinesco provided him with her organ. Constantinesco found Shuriah after Googling the name she had overheard in the hospital.
"It's like God has finally gifted me with an answer,” said Shuriah.
Constantinesco and Shuriah’s college friend kept getting his story out until another donor found him.
Shuriah now needs another kidney because his body has started to reject the one Constantinesco donated.
Shuriah’s doctors told him that the kidneys failed in different circumstances. But with the right kidney, he'll have a better outcome.
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