You don’t know who your cornea donation may help.

Cornea recipient Nick Bottka shares his story of receiving a cornea transplant in the 1980s, when the procedure was still relatively new. His successful surgery restored his sight, allowing him to raise and see his family and to have a successful career.

Vision loss not fully understood at first.

Bottka didn’t realize how bad his eyesight was or the severity of his condition until the early 1980s when he was in his 40s. In fact, he didn’t even learn he was nearsighted until he was in high school and couldn’t see the blackboard without sitting near the front of the room. It was then he saw an optometrist and was prescribed glasses, but he was not diagnosed with keratoconus until years later. He explained, “At that time not a lot of people went to an ophthalmologist; as a normal person like me, a young person, there was really no reason to go, it wasn’t that severe, so I just got new glasses every time.”

Eventually, in 1980, an optometrist referred him to an ophthalmologist, who saw Bottka as a prime candidate for a corneal transplant.

A Successful Career Due to Restored Sight

Bottka is a retired research physicist who dedicated his career to understanding and developing new materials that are being used in today’s advanced electronics and lasers, something that would not have been possible without good eyesight. With a Ph.D in physics, he worked for the Naval Research Lab in Washington, D.C.; after retiring from that position, he worked as a consultant for the U.S. government and as an associate professor at the University of Virginia.

He has also enjoyed seeing his family grow to include two children, seven grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. After retiring, he and his wife moved to Georgia to live near their children, “We were literally around the corner,” he said, “so we were able to be there for family activities.” Now living in Colorado, Bottka and his wife can enjoy seeing all of the beauty the state has to offer.

In His Own Words

My name is Nick Bottka. I am a fortunate recipient of two cornea grafts during the mid-eighties that allowed me to lead a normal life for 38 more years.

Now at 85 years of age, I still have those donor corneas thanks to advances in ophthalmology and unselfish donor families whom I owe much gratitude.

I have a rare cornea defect called keratoconus, a progressive thinning of the center of the cornea leading to bulging, severe astigmatism and eventual blindness: a condition not correctable by normal lenses. Since my teenage years, I have been wearing reading glasses and later in my adult life switched to hard contact lenses. In the early 1980s, I was directed to see a cornea specialist, Dr. Michael Lemp (now deceased), at Georgetown University Hospital, Washington, D.C., who recommended the cornea transplants on my eyes since I was going blind. Dr. Lemp was a renowned pioneer in developing new instruments for cornea surgery. I was fortunate to be a beneficiary of those new surgical techniques and the restoration of my vision.

Numerous advances have been made since the early 1980s in the field of cornea transplant: from the development of surgical microscopy, suture material, the use of steroids against inflammation and rejection, and new gas-permeable contact lenses.

As mentioned before, I am the beneficiary of  transplant research but also due to organizations such as the Rocky Mountain Lions Eye Bank that tirelessly promotes and encourages potential donors to give back vision to less fortunate.

Thankful for Donors and Doctors

Bottka said he had no trepidation going into surgery since he was losing his sight anyway, and this was the only option that would allow him to regain vision.

For others who may need a cornea transplant, Bottka would encourage them to see a qualified ophthalmologist and to trust their doctor.

If he could talk to the cornea donor’s family, he would tell them that they have given back vision to somebody who was able to make a difference in his own life with an extra 38 years of vision. “I have been able to contribute to my area of research. I would never have been able to do that without those corneal grafts.”

He also noted, “In those days, transplants were not done as immediately as they are today, but because of organizations like yours (RMLEB), you have a more corneas available, so it’s much easier to do it today.”

At the time of his surgery, there wasn’t a donor registry as we know it today, so he is especially grateful the individual’s family made the decision to donate their corneas. Commenting on the decision of the donor’s family, Bottka said, “What a great thing to give sight.”

Today, the donor registry is available in all states. People easily register their decision online. Once a decision is made to say yes to eye organ and tissue donation, it is important to share your wishes with family members.

He concluded, encouraging people to register their decision to be an eye, organ, and tissue donor saying,

“You don’t know who you may help with your cornea donation.”