By Tammy Jensen

Shad Ireland is the first dialysis patient to complete one of the most grueling events in sports – an Ironman® triathlon. That’s a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike race and a complete marathon (26.2 miles), all held consecutively. Shad has also been on dialysis for 25 years and experienced two failed kidney transplants.

Shad was first diagnosed with chronic kidney disease (CKD) at age 10. But the real “moment of truth” came in 1993. After the second failed kidney transplant, he was diagnosed with associated respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Shad lapsed into a coma and went from 145 to 75 pounds in weight. At one point, he was given 24 hours to live.

Thankfully, Shad survived. Soon after, he had a life-transforming experience while watching television coverage of the Ironman Triathlon World Championship in Kona, Hawaii. “I was transfixed by these incredible athletes,” he said. “At first it seemed unbelievable that any human being could do that. Then, as I lay there, the wheels started turning, and I thought to myself ‘I can do that.’”

Fast-forward to July 25, 2004, Shad ran, swam and cycled the Lake Placid (NY) Ironman triathlon. How did he do it? If you ask, he’ll say, “By sheer determination.” It also involved a long, steady improvement in his physical condition. Most amazing of all, Shad didn’t begin his intensive Ironman training until 2003, just one year before the Lake Placid race. “As a nephrologist, I once thought that what Shad is doing is impossible for a dialysis patient,” said Dr. Thomas Pintar, Medical Director of Fresenius Medical Care’s Bryan, Ohio and Defiance, Ohio clinics. “Shad is an inspiration to me every day in my nephrology practice. I encourage patients, especially those on dialysis, to pursue fitness and exercise as a vital component of their dialysis prescription.”

Shad is now 35 years old and maintains an intense, steady training schedule to achieve his ultimate goal, participating in the annual Ford Ironman World Championship triathlon in Hawaii. Plus, he does home hemodialysis four times a week for about five hours per treatment, with the assistance of his fiancée, Roxanne Warner.

“With my packed schedule, I decided to go on home hemodialysis,” said Shad. “It gives me the time flexibility I need and lets me fit my dialysis sessions in with whatever is going on in my life that day. With Roxanne’s assistance, doing home hemo is a straightforward process. The results, which are checked once a month at the clinic, are excellent.”

Shad has also taken up a different but equally impressive challenge, campaigning across North America to raise public awareness of CKD and to encourage other dialysis patients to take a positive, proactive approach to dealing with their illness and achieving their true life goals.

To make that happen, in December 2004, Shad established the Shad Ireland Foundation to give, in his words, “dialysis patients…the revolutionary opportunity to improve their quality of life and to pursue the life-long goals by positively incorporating physical fitness and education into their daily lives.” Regardless of the modality or dialysis provider, the Foundation supports patients of all ages and all stages of CKD.

The Shad Ireland Foundation provides much needed grants to any CKD patient who chooses to improve their physical fitness and also supports their educational goals. Its grant programs include:
• The Peg Smythe Fitness Grant, named for Shad’s mother, which gives grants of $500–$1,000 to dialysis patients for physical fitness programs, equipment and training.
• The Shad Ireland Education Grant, which offers financial assistance for tuition and books to qualified post-secondary school students with CKD.

In addition, in 2006 Shad founded Team Ireland (www.ironshad.com), which sponsors up to 24 athletes – male and female, healthy and challenged – of varying athletic abilities who want to participate in triathlons. Through speaking engagements, fundraising events and participation in races throughout North America, Shad and Team Ireland members help raise public awareness of chronic illnesses and inspire those facing similar challenges to strive to achieve their personal goals.

One person who has taken up the challenge is Javier Rosas, a 48-year-old dialysis patient in Phoenix. Athletic as a young man, Javier ran, weight trained and, by his own admission, was “in really good shape.” In fact, early on in his youth, one of his goals was to compete in a triathlon.

Then, in 1998, Javier started experiencing kidney failure and in 2000 went on three-day-a-week hemodialysis. The combination of the dialysis treatments and his studies in telecommunications networking left Javier with little time for exercise. His physical condition became distinctly less “buff” than it had been.

“Then, at the clinic one day, I read a magazine article on Shad and his running the Ironman triathlon, despite being a dialysis patient. To me, that seemed almost unbelievable,” said Javier. “But I didn’t think anything more about it.”

But Shad’s name popped up again. “Last April, as I was leaving the clinic, I saw a flyer about Shad competing in the upcoming Arizona Ironman Triathlon,” recalled Javier. “I decided to go to a meet-and-greet reception held for Shad at another local clinic.”

Meeting and talking with Shad in person made all the difference! “He really inspired me,” noted Javier. “I hadn’t run in years and didn’t think that, as a dialysis patient, long distances were viable. After talking to Shad, I got to thinking that maybe it was possible.”

Now Javier regularly runs about 10 miles a week. “With summer temperatures in Phoenix hitting the low 110s, the only way to work out is indoors,” noted Javier. “Now, I can exercise all year round. When I work out, I feel better, sleep better, have more energy – I even think more clearly.”

Today, Javier has another goal – to join Team Ireland and participate in the Life Time Fitness triathlon in Dallas in October 2008. Shad Ireland is living proof that people with chronic illnesses have the power to challenge their limitations and, in his words, “cross their own personal finish line.” He travels across North America, spreading the word that patients should take an active role in their healthcare and challenge some of the traditional limitations applied to people with chronic illnesses.

“People should know that they are more than their diagnosis,” said Shad. “A person’s attitude toward their illness has a huge impact, not just on what they can achieve, but on their total quality of life. They can still reach their goals and dreams – providing they commit to a positive, proactive approach to their situation. Get active, ask questions and keep striving to achieve! My motto is ‘No limitations, only inspiration.’”

Dr. Pintar adds, “Shad truly has a dramatic impact on people, whether they’re afflicted with CKD or not. From a purely medical standpoint, he shouldn’t be able to do what he does. He proves that, with extraordinary dedication and persistence, dialysis patients can pursue goals that many people think are impossible. If we knew what made Shad tick, the world would be a better place.”

For more information on the Shad Ireland Foundation and its health and fitness grants, available for any dialysis patient in the U.S., visit the Foundation’s Web site at www.shadirelandfoundation.org.

Tammy Jensen is Fresenius Medical Care’s Vice President of Arizona, Joint Venture Operations and West Business Unit Internal Staffing Programs.

This article originally appeared in the January 2008 issue of aakpRENALIFE.

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