Tissue Recipient Gets a Leg Up on Life

In 1986, Mike Malley stood at the base of Mount McKinley, gazing in awe at North America’s highest peak. It was the highlight of his trip to Alaska’s Denali National Park, where he spent a week backpacking and hiking. But the most wonderful part of Mike’s vacation wasn’t trekking through breathtaking landscape: It was simply that he could walk. Less than two years earlier, Mike’s left leg was crushed in an accident, and he faced possible amputation.

On a snowy December evening in 1984, 24-year-old Mike was driving home from the east side of Cleveland.  He’d spent a busy day working at a Malley’s Chocolates store, the candy making company owned by his family. “As I came into the downtown interchange, the roads were slick and messy,” recalls Mike. “I was involved in a minor fender bender.”

Mike got out of his car to assist another motorist from the accident. Just then, another car cut across two lanes of the highway and the middle berm. “Right at that moment, I was stepping between my vehicle and the car ahead of me,” says Mike. “He rear-ended the back of my car, and it pinned me temporarily in between the two cars.” Upon impact, the bone below his knee was pulverized.

“When I got to the hospital, they were surprised I had sensation in my toes,” remembers Mike. “But they said it didn’t look good. I had to sign amputation permission papers.” Fortunately, Mike was placed in the hands of a gifted and innovative orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Arthur Stefee at St. Vincent’s Charity Hospital. Rather than amputate, he opted to implant a six-inch piece of donor bone in Mike’s leg. “It acted like a bridge between my tibia,” says Mike.

Mike, who had no idea such a procedure was possible, calls the operation “mind-blowing.” Bone tissue is a specialized form of connective tissue that’s calcified. It’s transplanted for facial reconstruction, spinal and oral surgery, correction of birth defects and limb-saving procedures, such as the one Mike underwent. But it’s just one type of tissue that can be transplanted to help patients: Others include cornea to restore sight, skin for reconstructive surgery, tendons and ligaments to repair joint injuries and more.

After his implantation, Mike endured several other surgeries and extensive physical therapy. He required crutches for nearly two years—even using them on this trip to Alaska. Yet he says he is “blessed and grateful” for the bone transplantation.  “I feel like I have to give back,” he adds. And Mike has done just that.

Through the years, Mike has volunteered for LifeBanc, northeast Ohio’s organ procurement and tissue recovery agency. He periodically shares his experience with operating room nurses and other hospital staff, who deal with potential donor families. “It’s a tough thing to approach a grieving family,” admits Mike. “I tell the staff to think of the end result when they see me standing there.” He was also appointed to the LifeBanc Board of Directors.

Nearly a quarter century after his accident and transplantation, Mike continues to bike, cross country ski, swim and hike. Last summer, he enjoyed a day long hike in Colorado with his wife, 16-year-old daughter and 13-year-old son. They walked along the Continental Divide in the crest of the Rocky Mountains. Just like in Denali National Park years ago, the view didn’t get old. Nor has Mike’s gratitude toward his donor for making such a trip possible. 

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