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A U.S. Marine donates half his liver to a complete stranger battling liver disease. When Corey Weber learned that you could donate a portion of your liver to save someone’s life, he started filling out the paperwork to become a living donor. In the middle of his application process, his wife shared the story of a woman who lived in their town, Katie Sproull. She’s a mother of two who was battling chronic liver disease, desperately needed a new liver, and just happened to be O negative blood type, the same as Corey.
After a series of tests, Corey was found to be a perfect match and cleared to donate a portion of his liver. He went out to dinner with Katie so they could meet and two weeks later they had the procedure done. They both spent less than a week in the hospital and Katie reports that she’s feeling great and already symptoms she’s been struggling with for years have cleared up.
Medical experts say that the liver can fully regenerate for both the donor and the recipient. Corey’s liver is expected to be back to full-size within two months and Katie’s within three. The two hope their story will inspire others to consider being a living donor. "There are thousands of people that die on [the donor] list every year and there are billions of people out there with healthy livers," says Katie. "Nobody has to be on that list, there doesn't even need to be a list."
Source: WTAE