South Georgia man receives kidney from cousin after family’s months-long search for donor

ATKINSON COUNTY, Ga. (WALB) — A South Georgia man is on his way to recovery after a months-long search for a living kidney donor ended with an unexpected gift from a family member. In April, Gavan Tanner’s family told WALB he had been diagnosed with kidney failure and was doing dialysis treatments at home while he waited for a donor.PREVIOUS COVERAGE: South Georgia family pleads for kidney donor as son fights through home dialysisSouth Georgia family pleads for kidney donor as son fights through home dialysisNow, he’s recovering from what he said was a smooth kidney transplant surgery on Aug. 13, made possible by his cousin Carly. The path to recoveryTanner said he did not know his cousin was a match or that she was being tested to donate her kidney until she told him.“It was a little emotional,” Tanner said, noting the discovery brought him to tears. Tanner explained that the path to the transplant was “kind of rough.” He said he had no energy while on dialysis, when he received treat