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Courtney Kidd is working hard to raise organ donor awareness after a new approach to double-organ transplant saved her life.
Born with five congenital heart defects and suffering through several medical complications, Courtney needed both a new heart and a new liver. Previous surgeries at ages 2, 6, 12 and then again at 22, and numerous blood transfusions over the years, had caused her immune system to develop high levels of antibodies that would attack and reject foreign tissues.
She was told that her risk of organ rejection was too high if she received a heart and liver transplant in the usual order. Her Mayo Clinic doctors, however, turned her dire situation into an advantage, and she was one of the first in the world to receive an organ transplant in a way that was likely her only chance to survive. Courtney's doctors transplanted her liver first, allowing the new liver to deal with her body's excess antibodies and pave the way for her heart transplant.
Watch the video below to learn more about Courtney’s story and this unique approach to a double-organ transplant.
