Breathe in. Breathe out.
300th lung transplant “twins” will never take breathing for granted again
BACKGROUND: We all do it about 15 times a minute or 22,000 times a day. But most of us
never give it a thought. Breathing. It’s just something we do. That was not the case for Kevin King
and Kenny Deison. Before receiving a new lung, they each thought about breathing nearly every
waking hour. At his lowest point, King, 53, who suffered from pulmonary fibrosis, remembers asking
his wife to buy him an electric toothbrush because the exertion of brushing his teeth was just too much.
Deison, 59, a rancher, who made his living playing the guitar, was forced to have portions of both
lungs removed in 2005 due to emphysema. In the fall of last year, doctors told him he might not make
it through the winter.
This spring they got the phone call that would ultimately give them the strength to once again take a
deep breath – even brush their teeth. A donated set of lungs was available and, fortunately for these
two men who had not yet met, King needed a left and Deison, a right. The “twins” are happy to share
the honor of being the 300th to undergo lung transplantation at the University Transplant Center.
Reaching the 300th milestone makes the University program one of the largest in the nation. Better yet,
patient outcomes for lung transplantation at University exceed national averages.
| WHO: |
300th Lung Transplant Recipients: Kenny Deison and Kevin King
University Transplant Center physicians, nurses and staff |
| WHAT: |
Press Conference & Celebration
(Complete with matching “left & right lung” shirts for the recipients and blowing bubbles) |
| WHEN: |
Tuesday, June 17 at 3 p.m. |
| WHERE: |
University Hospital
4502 Medical Drive
(meet in Corp. Communications, 1st floor, main entrance) |
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