Two Brothers, Four Transplants, One Strong Family

Logan (left) and Connor Brown at Turnagain Arm in Alaska. The brothers have both received kidney and liver transplants at Seattle Children’s.
“I hate to tell you this, but your son needs a kidney transplant.”
Those words left Rob and Patty Brown dumbstruck.
It was October 2008. That day their 6-year-old son, Connor, had complained that his feet were cramping during hockey practice. Later that evening, his hands and feet completely locked up — a condition called tetany.
“We raced him to the emergency room thinking it was just something silly,” Rob remembers.
It wasn’t something silly. Connor was diagnosed with nephronophthisis, a rare genetic disorder that leads to kidney failure.
Little did the Browns know this was just the beginning of a long and frightening journey, not only for Connor but for their younger son, Logan, as well — a journey that would lead to four transplants and would test their strength as a family.