Winter 2001 - Newsletter
Sports & Exercise
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Dropping By To Say Hello!
by Susan Burroughs, CPA
I have two new lungs! My name is Susan Burroughs and I have Cystic Fibrosis. I had a double-lung transplant on May 23, 2000, just one month before my 40th birthday at UAB in Birmingham. Dr. David McGiffin, the surgeon, and Dr. Randy Young, the pulmonologist, did a fantastic job of saving my life! Five weeks after my transplant, I developed pneumonia and was on the ventilator for 7days. I remained in the hospital or another week. I was discharged to my home in Atlanta. It is now six months after my transplant, my oxygen SAT's are 100%, and my FEV1's are 95% and I am showing no signs of rejection. My life is like I never knew it could be. I am hiking, biking, and planning a snow-skiing trip with my husband and my 6-year old daughter.
Someone in the operating room wrote me this after my surgery: "Your surgery was so amazing. I never thought a set of lungs could look so beautiful. In the end, all I could see was a beautiful set of lungs breathing rhythmically. It looked as though you had a white butterfly resting calmly on your chest."
You can read my story in detail at the website of my foundation, Reaching Out. CNN is also going to cover my story at Christmas. More details are available on the website.