Hostess Rise'
Forum Leader Username: Risa
Post Number: 10828 Registered: 05-2003
| Posted on Tuesday, October 27, 2009 - 08:28 am: |
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I was diagnosed with Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis around 1995, and became gradually sicker until the time of my transplant, May 25, 2001, Henry Ford Hospital, Detroit, MI. The number of bleeds the surgeons had to deal with complicated my surgery. I think that I was transfused with 110 units of blood products over the course of 2 days of surgery. Hospitalized for 30 days, I couldn't eat for 2 weeks, and my weight dropped to 114 lbs on a 6-foot frame. Yet, I knew the moment I awoke from surgery, my new liver was working well. From that moment, I felt like a new person. No jaundice. No itching. And a ton of energy. It was an absolute miracle. And I am happy to say I am now back to a lean 155 lbs, run 25 miles a week and even trained this last summer for the 2002 Chicago Marathon. Unfortunately, I twisted my knee 2 weeks before the race, so I only ran the first 5 miles before my knee quit. I will be training this spring for the San Diego Marathon in June, and will make another attempt at Chicago 2003. I promote donor awareness in Metro Detroit fulltime and consider all these efforts a tribute to my donor family and their loved one's liver that now functions in me.
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