Bijou Phillips Undergoes Life-Saving Kidney Transplant: ‘Beyond Grateful’

Bijou Phillips is on the mend after undergoing a life-saving kidney transplant.

Months ago, the star made a public plea for a donor. Bijou was born with underdeveloped kidneys and received a transplant in 2017.

Due to recent complications, she had to go on dialysis and needed a new kidney. The single mom said, “Time is of the essence.”

On Tuesday, she shared on Instagram, “I am beyond, beyond grateful to everyone who rushed in to help me, get checked to donate, you are all [heroes]! My wonderful brother [Aron Wilson] donated in the kidney exchange! He saved a life, and the life he saved had a special person donate for them, and then a few weeks later! The voucher program found me a perfect match! So close it’s like I got the kidney from one of my parents!”

She also praised her doctor, writing, “I am so blown away by Dr Veale and the magic he does! The kidney exchange, voucher program, and his surgical skills!!! He only cut the facia! He didn’t cut the muscles so I didn’t even really need much pain medication at all, just Tylenol! I feel at five days out like I did four months after my last surgery! The technique he developed is brilliant and he is a lifesaver!”

Phillips thanked her “wonderful and amazing” team at UCLA and her brother Aron, writing, “Thank you the most! 🥰🙏🏼”

The 46-year-old shared a carousel including hospital-room selfies and a video of her walking through the hospital. She also shared a selfie snapped by her daughter Fianna, 12, at an outdoor table. Bijou’s sister Chynna Phillips and her husband Billy Baldwin are among the family supporters in the pic.

Bijou shares Fianna with her ex-husband Danny Masterson, who is serving a 30-year prison sentence for rape.

In February, Phillips opened up to Us Weekly about wanting to be there for her daughter.

“Before the first transplant, I went through a dark night of the soul,” she said. “You get to this point where you have to be okay with your life and think, ‘You know what? I’m proud of myself. I’ve checked all the boxes I wanted to check. I feel confident leaving.’ I was married and able to let go and be at peace with it. It’s sort of the death of the ego, because there’s this part of you that wants to keep going and make another movie and make another album and fight, fight, fight. You have that fire inside of you when you’re an artist… Now I’m a single mom and things are different. I want to be here for her, and I have to be here for her. The fight is back. That had been gone for a long time. I’m it. I’m all she’s got.”

Fianna was 3 when Bijou had her first transplant. She recalls, “She would play with her dolls and be like, ‘This doll is going to dialysis.’ In some ways, this is normal for her.”

As for coping with the uncertainty of finding a donor at the time, she said, “I’m just giving it to God. I’ve been tested my whole life. There have been so many things that have brought me sadness and shame and fear and worry. I had to grow so much. I’ve had to really look at myself [and be] thankful for what I’ve had. We’re so lucky to be here on this planet, in these bodies, getting to live this life. There’s so much love, there’s so much beauty. It’s unbelievable. When you live in a body that you can’t always trust… it makes the things that are beautiful so much more beautiful. It’s kind of like the cheat code. You go through all of these hard things, but God, it makes the sunsets prettier, and it makes taking a breath like a glass of champagne. Everything is better because you have so much gratitude.”