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Entertainment September 14, 2017
An incredible story of friendship.
Selena Gomez revealed over Instagram Thursday that her health took a turn for the worse this past summer when she desperately needed a kidney transplant. When none of her family members were a match, Gomez turned to her close friend, actress Francia Raísa, who stepped in without hesitation.
“I’m very aware some of my fans had noticed I was laying low for part of the summer and questioning why I wasn’t promoting my new music, which I was extremely proud of,” Gomez explained in the Instagram post. “So I found out I needed to get a kidney transplant due to my Lupus and was recovering. It was what I needed to do for my overall health.”
According to The Blast, who first broke the news, Gomez’s close family underwent extensive testing to help the 25-year-old singer find an organ, but no one was a match. That’s when Raísa, who is best known for her role on “The Secret Life of the American Teenager,” volunteered to get tested. Luckily, Raísa was a match and the two underwent surgery in June.
“There aren’t words to describe how I can possibly thank my beautiful friend Francia Raisa,” said Gomez on Instagram. “She gave me the ultimate gift and sacrifice by donating her kidney to me. I am incredibly blessed. I love you so much sis.”
Gomez first revealed she had lupus in 2015 telling Billboard “I was diagnosed with lupus, and I’ve been through chemotherapy. That’s what my break was really about. I could’ve had a stroke. I wanted so badly to say, ‘You guys have no idea. I’m in chemotherapy. You’re assholes.’ I locked myself away until I was confident and comfortable again.”
According to medical experts, a kidney transplant is common with certain forms of lupus. “Lupus is an autoimmune disease that can, among other things, affect the kidneys,” explained NBC News medical correspondent Dr. John Torres. “If it causes the immune system to attack the kidneys enough they can fail, requiring dialysis or a kidney transplant.”
Gomez has been outspoken about her disease and the struggles the come with it while maintaining a high profile career, telling People in 2016, “Lupus can affect people in different ways. I’ve discovered that anxiety, panic attacks and depression can be side effects of lupus, which can present their own challenges.”
Of course, one of her most powerful moments came during the 2016 American Music Awards when she gave an emotional speech addressing her absence from the spotlight saying, “I had to stop … because I had everything. And I was absolutely broken inside. I kept it all together enough where I would never let you down. But I kept it too much together to where I let myself down.”
She then added, “If you are broken, you don’t have to stay broken.”
Gomez says she’s now on the road to recovery and we wish her all the best.
To register to be an organ donor, click here.
To donate to the Lupus Research Alliance, click here.
