Bridget Christie Palm’s Story

When Bridget was 18 months old, she was diagnosed with a chronic kidney disease, Nephrotic Syndrome (NS) for which there is no known cause or cure.  When Bridget relapses, she must take high levels of Prednisone, a corticosteroid to bring her back into remission. 

Over the years, Bridget has suffered approximately 20 relapses.  The severity of each varies and affects her in different ways.  We are lucky in the sense that Bridget responds rapidly to the steroids and typically is in remission within two weeks.  Unfortunately, steroids cannot be stopped quickly and must be tapered off over several weeks.  This increases their cumulative toxicity, in addition to her chances of suffering from the potential negative side effects which include: weight gain, bone density reduction, cataracts, stunted growth, abdominal pain, face swelling, insomnia, hyperactivity and anxiety, to name a few.

Our worst relapse occurred when Bridget was five and half years old.  Within one week she gained 15 pounds (20% of her body mass) and her eyes were nearly swollen shut.  During this period, Bridget developed a peritonitis infection.  She ended up in Intensive care for 48 hours and was hospitalized for 10 days.  This was a VERY scary experience.

At six years old, to help prevent frequent relapses, Bridget was prescribed a drug called Mycophenolate Mofetil (MMF) also known as CellCept.  We were lucky during this three year period as Bridget remained relapse free.  The drug then spontaneously stopped working for her.  Bridget became steroid dependent, meaning she could not be tapered off steroids and remain in remission.  To prevent the negative side effects of prednisone, we chose to put Bridget on a new drug treatment for NS called Prograf.  It has been nearly two years and she has taken well to the drug with two minor relapses.  Unfortunately, Prograf is not a safe long-term drug treatment (about three years) due to its toxicity.

Many kids do not have the same luck and great responses as Bridget.  Seeing and learning of these cases is heart breaking.  To help find better treatments and ultimately a cure, I have become an advocate of NephCure.  Sharing our story and the stories of so many others that suffer with this horrible disease will help our cause.

In October, Bridget's dad will canvas New England on a six-state bike tour this October to raise awareness and funds for kidney disease research. Learn More.

Bridget (Minimal Change Nephrotic Syndrome since 1998)

Mike (Dad)