Jennifer's Story
Jennifer was born on 12th June 1985 with Cystic Fibrosis. The symptoms of the disease meant she would have a life that would last no longer than her late teens.
As a child Jennifer was happy, bright and optimistic. She became an exceptional student and went on to complete a University degree, along with an MA. She always had an unfaltering fighting spirit and with the advent of improved medication, her life expectancy was extended. Jennifer Wederell, 27, died of cancer on August 24 at her home in Hawkwell, Essex, 16 months after being given a lung transplant at Harefield Hospital in London.
As a child Jennifer was happy, bright and optimistic. She became an exceptional student and went on to complete a University degree, along with an MA. She always had an unfaltering fighting spirit and with the advent of improved medication, her life expectancy was extended. Jennifer Wederell, 27, died of cancer on August 24 at her home in Hawkwell, Essex, 16 months after being given a lung transplant at Harefield Hospital in London.
A woman born with cystic fibrosis who died after being given a lung transplant from a smoker. Her father is now calling for hospitals to tell patients about a donor's health history.
Jennifer Wederell, 27, died of cancer on August 24 at her home in Hawkwell, Essex, 16 months after being given the transplant at Harefield Hospital in London.
She was not told at the time of the transplant that the middle-aged donor had been a smoker.
Now Jennifer's father, Colin Grannell, says people facing organ transplants should be told of any adverse history from the donor that might affect a successful transplant.
He says he does not think his daughter would have agreed to the transplant if she had known the full facts.
The hospital says it is sorry she was not given the choice.
Wederell, who was on oxygen for 24 hours a day by her mid-20s, had been on the waiting list for a lung transplant for 18 months when she was told there was a match in April 2011.
She received the transplant and married her long-term boyfriend, David, that same year.
But by February, less than a year after the operation, Wederell had been diagnosed with cancer, with the terrible news that it had spread.
"The shock immediately turned to anger in so far as all the risks were explained in the hour before her transplant and not once was the fact that a smoker's lungs would be used mentioned," Grannell told the Daily Mail.
"She was dying a death that was meant for someone else."
Grannell has set up a Facebook site, Jennifer's Choice
, to encourage non-smokers to sign up to the organ donor register.Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/health/2012/12/19/woman-dies-after-receiving-smoker-lungs-in-organ-transplant/#ixzz2FhLpDUpU
“You Have the Power to Donate Life – Sign-up today! Tell Your Loved Ones of Your Decision”
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