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Journalism of Courage
The lives of four Indians and a Lebanese national were saved after the family of a 67-year-old Spanish woman, who was declared brain dead at the Jaslok hospital in Mumbai, agreed to donate her organs.
The Spanish woman, Teresa Maria Fernandez, was visiting India as a tourist as part of a group when on January 5 she suffered a haemorrhagic stroke in Mumbai. She was rushed to the Jaslok hospital, where she was operated upon by neurologist Dr Azad Irani and neurosurgeon Dr Sudheer Ambekar. “Her condition didn’t improve and she was declared brain dead,” said Dr Ambekar.
Her son and daughter rushed to Mumbai upon hearing the news. The Spanish woman’s daughter, who is a doctor, said her mother always wanted to donate her organs. The family agreed to donate her organs.
As per the Regional cum State Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (ROTTO-SOTTO), her lung, liver and kidneys were given to Indian patients. Her heart was given to a Lebanese national. Her bones and tendons were also donated. Her liver helped save the life of a 54-year-old doctor from Mumbai.
The recipient had developed liver cirrhosis in 2019 after a hysterectomy. The transplant was done under Dr Chetan Kalal, program director, Hepatology and Transplant Medicine, at Nanavati hospital.
“The woman had developed fatty liver due to obesity and diabetes, which led to acute and chronic liver failure in 2019 with ascites and renal involvement. She responded well to medical management but couldn’t undergo transplant due to the absence of a suitable donor in the family. In the past two months, her health had started deteriorating due to the underlying liver status,” said Dr Kalal.
Dr Ambekar said people should learn from the family who without hesitation donated the organs to unknown people in a foreign country. “We didn’t even need to counsel them for the donation as they themselves wanted to donate. They showed how humanity is not restricted within geographical borders by setting an example for all of us,” he said.
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