Teresa Tersigni’s friends have done a lot for her in the past year.
They’ve organized craft boutiques, golf outings, a Poker Run and some have even posed nude for a calendar, all in an effort to raise money for the Oakland Liver Transplant Fund, which was created especially for Tersigni, an Ortonville resident.
Tersigni, 46, has suffered health problems for nearly 20 years, but it was only last year that she was finally diagnosed with primary biliary cirrhosis, an auto-immune disease that starts by attacking the liver and can progress to cancer. The only cure is a liver transplant.
Tersigni, had undergone gallbladder surgery, yearly hepatitis testing, incorrect diagnoses of hiatal hernias and ulcers and even suggestions that she needed psychological help prior to August 2004 when she was so jaundiced her eyes yellowed and finally received a correct diagnosis from a liver specialist.
‘I had almost 20 years of pain and doctors who didn’t know what the problem was,? says Tersigni, a mortgage consultant for Mica Mortgage in Clarkston. ‘As devastating as the diagnosis was, it was a relief to finally know the issues were real and there is a way to correct it.?
Tersigni was immediately put on a donor list and sent to a surgeon. She was initially given a MELD score of 14. The MELD Score is used by U.S. transplant hospitals to determine liver transplant urgency. The scale goes from 1-45 with a score of 15 needed to require a transplant.
Tersigni was able to get to her current MELD score of 7 by medication. She takes 18 medications and high doses of certain vitamins to keep her healthy until she is ready for a transplant, the only thing that will cure her. She has been told the medications will eventually stop working.
She is hopeful that they at least work until Henry Ford Health System is approved by her insurer to perform the transplant, possibly by December. The liver transplant could cost up to $2.5 million.
‘Some other hospitals don’t do as many surgeries or the survival rate isn’t as good,? says Tersigni, who may be able to get a live donor, since the liver is the only organ able to grow back.
While waiting for her transplant, Tersigni undergoes regular testing for heart disease and cancers of the esophagus and lungs, common developments in her disease. She has had problems with the blood vessels in her legs and toxins in the blood can cause skin problems, but for the most part, Tersigni says she feels really good and she is overwhelmed with the support she has been given by everyone from fellow mortgage brokers and real estate agents from Coldwell Banker Schweitzer who share her office building, as well as sorority sisters and people in the community. Tersigni may be off work for six months to a year when she receives her transplant, but she has been told not to worry about the money, her friends are raising funds to help her.
‘I can’t even think of the words to thank them,? says Tersigni. ‘How do you thank people who have done so much? The response is overwhelming and it’s been on a continual basis. We’ve all given to a charity who has needed it, but this has been over a year. I think they’re special, good people.?

A Euchre party to benefit the Oakland Liver Transplant Fund for Teresa Tersigni will be 6:30 p.m., Oct. 14 at the American Legion Post 63, 8047 Ortonville Road. A $25 entry fee, which must be paid in advance by Oct. 13, includes a dinner buffet and two drink tickets (well drinks, beer and pop). Extra change should be brought for penalties. There will be cash prizes and a 50/50 raffle. Play begins at 7:08 p.m. For more information, call Coldwell Baker Schweitzer at (248) 625-1000 and Eric at ext. 102 or Joyce at ext. 100.