Here's Something You Wouldn't Expect To Read

[dr_phil_physics]

Sounds Like A Science Fiction Plot

Twelve years ago a man gets a heart transplant. Two years ago he goes and visits the donor. She passed away last year.

Brr-up!!!! (Skips track)

Uh, say what? Run that math by me again?

But It's True

Richard DeVos, 83, was interviewed in The Grand Rapids Press yesterday. The multi-billionaire is one of the two founders of Amway, celebrating its fiftieth birthday and hence the article.

The donor, a woman in England, received a heart-lung transplant. Presumably she needed lungs, her heart was okay, and DeVos had the money to fly to England and make the transplant happen.

Huh. Neat in a weird way.

Just thought you'd be interested.

Dr. Phil

Comments

[steve-buchheit.livejournal.com]

Ah, the lives of the rich.

[(Anonymous)]

I'm surprised he didn't name the transplant after himself.

Yeah, I used to live in Van Andel-DeVos, er, I mean Amwayland, er I mean Grand Rapids.

//Jim Wright

[stonekettlestation.blogspot.com (from livejournal.com)]

Just checking to see if I can comment using my stonekettle LiveID

Looks like I can. I hate being anonymous. I gotta be me!

[dr-phil-physics.livejournal.com]

No, you just hate being stuck in the moderation queue and treated like the common criminal you are. (grin)

Dr. Phil

[(Anonymous)]

It wasn't because he was rich that the operation was done, it was becuase he was rich that he could go over to the UK and skip out on the UNOS waiting list here in the States.

There are a few cases of living heart donors in UNOS as well, when the blood vessels and connective tissue of the heart and lung are so tied up in some patients that removing one by itself would damage one or both organs, they remove the heart and lung as a single unit, replace the lungs and heart of the one patient who really only needs one organ, then do a swap of the good organ of the recipient back to the donor, who gets another organ from a third donor. They sometimes do four-way organ swaps of kidneys, too, when donors are not histo-compatible with their intended recipients, but are compatible with another recipient (and vice verse in the set of pairs).

--JTS

[dr-phil-physics.livejournal.com]

I never doubted these things could happen, even under UNOS, but it was more that you could meet your heart donor after the fact. (grin)

Dr. Phil