VIDEO: Woman Survives 6 Days Without Lungs Waiting for a Donor!

32-years-old Melissa was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. In hospital, doctors realized that her lungs are resistant to the medication, so they had to be replaced. Melissa survived only connected to the machines for 6 days. After she received new lungs, she spoke about how lucky she is to be alive.

According to Wikipedia, cystic fibrosis is a genetic disorder that affects mostly the lungs, but also the pancreas, liver, kidneys, and intestine. Long-term issues include difficulty breathing and coughing up mucus as a result of frequent lung infections. Other signs and symptoms may include sinus infections, poor growth, fatty stool, clubbing of the fingers and toes, and infertility in males. Different people may have different degrees of symptoms.
Cystic fibrosis is inherited in an autosomal recessive manner. It is caused by the presence of mutations in both copies of the gene for the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) protein. Those with a single working copy are carriers and otherwise mostly normal. CFTR is involved in production of sweat, digestive fluids, and mucus. When CFTR is not functional, secretions which are usually thin instead become thick. The condition is diagnosed by a sweat test and genetic testing.

Read Melissa’s full story below, provided by The Telegraph.

A Canadian woman’s life has been saved in an unprecedented operation which saw doctors removing her lungs for six days while she waited for a transplant.
Melissa Benoit, 32, who was born with cystic fibrosis, had a severe bacterial lung infection and was dying when she was admitted to Toronto General Hospital.
Both of her lungs were taken out and a small portable, artificial lung was connected to her heart.
A team of 13 operating staff, including three thoracic surgeons, took part in the efforts to remove Mrs Benoit’s organs in a procedure which took nine hours.
The risks included bleeding into an empty chest cavity, whether her blood pressure and oxygen levels could be supported afterwards, and whether she would survive the operation.
After her lungs were removed Mrs Benoit’s condition stabilised and a pair of donor lungs became available six days later, at which point she received the transplant.
Mrs Benoit, a mother-of-one, said: “Having this transplant saved my life. If I didn’t have it I would have died,” she said.
“I wouldn’t be here to see my daughter grow up, I wouldn’t be here to grow old with my husband. These are things that I want so badly in life and I wouldn’t have made it.”
Surgeon Dr Shaf Keshavjee said: “This was bold and very challenging but Melissa was dying before our eyes.
“We had to make a decision because Melissa was going to die that night. Melissa gave us the courage to go-ahead.”
The operation took place in April 2016 but was only publicised nine months later.
Her family said Mrs Benoit had often told them she would want to try everything possible to live for her husband Christopher and two-year-old daughter Olivia.
Thoracic surgeon Dr Marcelo Cypel said: “Her new lungs functioned beautifully and inflated easily. Perfect.”

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