CLEVELAND, OHIO (CLEVELAND CLINIC) - An Ohio grandfather is looking forward to celebrating Thanksgiving with his family after undergoing a triple organ transplant at Cleveland Clinic. This procedure is so rare, only three other people in the entire U.S. have ever had it done. 64-year-old Don Elliot is getting a second chance at life.
Given the severity of Don’s condition, doctors at Cleveland Clinic decided his best option was to undergo a triple organ transplant.
“It’s just amazing. I can breathe; I’m chasing the grandkids around,” says Elliot. In February, he had a double lung, liver, and kidney transplant. “I had alpha one antitrypsin, and it's a lung disease that starts on the liver then goes to the lungs,” adds Elliot. “In the last year it really went bad. I had a liver failure, kidney failure, and the lungs weren't very good.”
Given the severity of Don’s condition, doctors at Cleveland Clinic decided his best option was to undergo a triple organ transplant, with all of the organs coming from the same donor.
“It's the first case that we've done at the Cleveland Clinic,” says Dr. Sameep Sehgal. And the fourth to ever be done nationally. The grueling and complex surgery took 24 hours to complete.
“A single solid organ transplant in itself is very hard for anybody to get through, for their bodies to recover from. A triple organ transplant is more so,” adds Dr. Sameep Sehgal.
This procedure is so rare, only three other people in the entire U.S. have ever had it done.
Don’s recovery was full of ups and downs, but he persevered, and he has his family to thank for that.
“It was rough, but I wasn’t going to give up. I knew what I had to do to stay here with my family,” Elliot. He also credits his medical team and, of course, the donor. If not for their selfless act, none of this would have been possible. “I’m sorry the person had to become a donor. I’m a donator myself, and you know it’s a blessing to be able to help somebody else,” says Elliot.
And while Don is doing well, doctors will continue to monitor him long-term to make sure there are no complications.
