With his brother's life on line, Kane was able Sibling's kidney donation likely saved former fire chief BY DAN NEWMAN Staff Writer courtesy of Barbara Mitchell Joe Kane (r) who donated a kidney to his younger brother, Kevin. Kevin endured a 13-year battle against lupus and is now doing much better after receiving his brother's kidney on May 22. MIDDLETOWN - As a former township fire chief, it was Kevin Kane's job to deal with the crucial task of saving people's lives. More recently though, it was Kane who was in peril, the one who needed others to help him out. Having suffered from lupus for the past 13 years, the 37-year-old's body was starting to shut down on him. Eight years ago, his kidneys started to fail. Last year, it was time for him to start dialysis for about 11 hours per day. Eventually Kevin was told he'd need a kidney transplant. It ended up being a familiar name that would help to get him off the donor list onto the operating table. "I just couldn't watch him suffer anymore like that, and so I wanted to see if there was something I could do to help him out," Kane's brother, Joe, said. "I watched him deteriorate for so long." So at a family outing, Joe decided to tell Kevin his intentions. "I had a birthday party for one of my sons, and that's when Joe told me that he wanted to donate one of his kidneys to me," Kevin Kane said. "I told him that if he was really serious that I'd have to make some phone calls to set things up. He told me he was very serious about it, and so that's when things got started." At first the brothers kept things under wraps, but as time went on, they let the cat out of the bag to their family and friends. Kevin says that people were very happy to hear about what his brother was willing to do for him. Joe's wife, Denise, initially had mixed feelings, but knew that her husband was about to do the right thing. Following testing to make sure that the brothers would be a perfect match, which they were, the slate was set for 47-year-old Joe to help out his younger brother. "I wasn't totally sure if it was a safe thing to do. You always hear stories about surgeries and procedures that don't work out," Denise explained. "But I know that this was important and that it'd be able to help Kevin." Leading up to the transplant, even though he knew that it would be a help to prolonging his life, Kevin Kane did say that he was a bit nervous about what the doctors were telling him concerning bleeding and other issues that may arise having to do with the process. In the end though, Kevin said it has been worth it ever since the May 22 procedure, which took place at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, New Brunswick. Both brothers admitted to still being a little sore, but otherwise, they say that things are fine and they are looking forward to resuming their normal everyday lives. Joe will soon return to work, and Kevin is looking forward to a very comfortable future. "Even with the soreness I still feel great," Kevin said. "It's a huge difference for me. Now I'm not so tired anymore. I've been in remission for a few years now. I feel like I have a new shot at life now. I was on that donors list for about a year-and-a-half so it really is a great feeling now for me."