Organ recipients in UAE happy about 'second chance'

Abu Dhabi - Younis is a mother of four boys and two girls and has been living in Abu Dhabi for 33 years.

The UAE's first double-lung transplant patient has spoken about how it feels to be breathing again and getting a second chance to live after a historic surgery.

Rahima Younis, a 46-year-old Palestinian expat, underwent the complex procedure at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi (CCAD) on June 10, 2018, after suffering from idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a debilitating, progressive disease that causes extensive scarring of the lungs, for the past few years.

The patient, who had to use a wheelchair and oxygen cylinders prior to the operation, told Khaleej Times that she's now living a normal and healthy life.

"I am so glad that I had this surgery. I am now breathing freely," Younis said on the sidelines of an event organised by CCAD on Tuesday to celebrate transplant successes in the Year of Tolerance.

Younis is a mother of four boys and two girls and has been living in Abu Dhabi for 33 years. "I cannot describe how it feels to breathe again normally like other people. I spent more than three years being plunged into oxygen. But after the successful operation, I can now walk freely, do everything on my own, including the house chores and taking care of my children."

Youinis, who worked as a private tutor before she was diagnosed with IPF, added: "I thank God for giving me a second chance to live. I am so grateful to the doctors at Cleveland Clinic and the family of the donor."

Dr Redha Souilamas, chair of thoracic surgery at CCAD, who led the double-lung transplant, told Khaleej Times that the surgery, the first of its kind in the UAE, took just over five hours to complete.

"While a double-lung transplant is a complex procedure, Rahima has recovered almost 100 per cent following the surgery and she can do everything like a normal healthy person," said Dr Souilamas.

"There is no definitive cure for IPF and patients have a low survival rate after diagnosis without transplant surgery."

Younis had spent four months on the waiting list before the hospital got the organs from a deceased donor.

The Algerian doctor, who worked in Paris for 15 years, said patients with IPF are typically given just a three to five-year survival rate after diagnosis.

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