After Brandy Mills contracted COVID-19 in the summer of 2021, she spent more than three months in the hospital. She could barely get out of bed. She lost 50 pounds. And her lungs quit working. Today, she’s back on her feet, thanks to a double lung transplant she received at Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center over [Continue Reading]
Celebrating Donate Life Month: A Living Kidney Donation forms an Unbreakable Bond
By Alexandra Becker Cheri Longan and Jessica Palomarez have been best friends for more than two decades, working side-by-side as Labor & Delivery nurses at Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital. They’ve been together through some of life’s biggest triumphs and greatest challenges, but neither could have predicted the surgical procedure that would bring them even closer [Continue Reading]
“I thought I was going to have a heart attack”
63-year-old Mark Kuitert said this is how he felt when doctors told him he would need a double lung transplant to survive COVID-19 By George Kovacik Mark Kuitert was perfectly healthy and enjoying life to the fullest early last June. He was on a hiking trip with his family at Garden of the Gods in [Continue Reading]
Donating a Kidney to Our Family’s Former Babysitter
By Mark Neville People can donate one of their kidneys? While they’re alive? Really? Six months ago, I didn’t even know this option existed. It all started with a Facebook post about our kids’ former babysitter, Tasha. The post said Tasha was in need of a kidney from a living donor. More specifically, she was [Continue Reading]
Going Back to College with a New Heart
By Meredith Whittemore “Ma’am, do you know why I pulled you over?” It’s the question drivers worry will soon be followed by a traffic citation. But Shelby Rab’s driver had a unique reason for speeding that gained her leniency. “She told the officer, ‘We’ve got to get to Houston to get her a new heart!’ [Continue Reading]
Learning to Breathe Again After Life-Threatening Complications from Asthma
By Meredith Whittemore Breathing is something most people do without thinking. Not Joseph Bolin. Bolin battled asthma for years but his breathing worsened significantly after he developed idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, an incurable and potentially deadly lung disease that scars the lungs. “I was at a point where it was really impacting my quality of life. [Continue Reading]