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April 11th, Prague, Czech Republic—Glenn Kelly’s journey as a heart transplant patient came full circle today in Prague, where he addressed attendees at the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation (ISHLT) annual meeting and academic session, including members of his own care team.

As a high school senior in suburban Peoria, Illinois, Kelly was diagnosed with stage 4 Hodgkin lymphoma and underwent eight months of chemotherapy and radiation therapy. After 10 months of remission, her cancer returned and she underwent a bone marrow transplant. With his cancer in remission again, he graduated from college and enjoyed a very active life for the next 17 years, skiing, cycling, mountain climbing, and even running marathons.

Then, out of nowhere, Kelly suffered a heart attack at age 36. Doctors discovered his right coronary artery was almost completely blocked, and he placed three stents to support it. Over the next 10 years, his heart condition will require more stents, valve replacements, and not one but two coronary artery bypass surgeries at the University of Minnesota Medical Center in Minneapolis. By 2015, Kelly was suffering from heart failure. This is probably due to the effects of radiation therapy he received as a teenager.

He was placed on the transplant list and eventually transferred to Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, where he received a new heart in 2016. An unusually long and difficult recovery period followed, during which he suffered kidney failure, a fungal infection, and two strokes. Organ rejection. In 2019, he underwent a second organ transplant and his kidney was indirectly donated by his youngest son.

“I’ve had support along the way, from doctors and health care workers to volunteers with the support organization Second Chance for Life,” Kelly said. “I don’t think my accomplishments would have been as successful without the support I received throughout my journey.”

Despite all his health problems, Kelly had a successful career in IT and marketing, including 17 years at IBM. But through his experience as a patient, he realized his true calling.

“My metrics changed from how well I could do my daily job to how many patients I could help,” he said. “Patients became my currency.”

Kelly dedicated herself to supporting patients suffering from advanced heart disease through in-person and telephone visits and support groups, ultimately serving as President of Second Chance for Life for four years. During his tenure, the group formed an alliance with the international group Mending Hearts, the world’s largest peer-to-peer heart patient support organization with more than 115,000 members.

Mended Hearts has given Kelly the opportunity to continue her work educating and supporting patients. She also became more involved in advocacy and legislation at the state and federal levels. He currently serves as the group’s patient voice and advocacy leader.

“Thanks to our advocacy work, we have been able to help thousands of patients instead of one person at a time,” he said.

Kelly now spends her days calling, visiting and advising patients in person. In her new role as Patient Advocate Director on the ISHLT Foundation Board of Directors, Kelly will help ensure the Foundation’s agenda addresses the issues that matter most to patients with advanced heart and lung disease.

His highest calling yet may be to serve America’s new Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN). OPTN, created by bipartisan legislation last fall, is charged with revamping the nation’s organ transplant system. Kelly was elected as the thoracic patient representative on the OPTN Board of Directors.

“Patients always need support at some point in their lives, whether they realize it or not,” Kelly says. “This motivates my work. I want to empower patients through support and education and teach them how to be self-advocates.”

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About ISHLT

The International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation (ISHLT) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the care of patients with advanced heart or lung disease through innovative treatments through transplantation, mechanical support, research, education, and research. is an interdisciplinary professional organization. And advocacy. ISHLT members focus on a variety of interventions and treatments related to transplantation and advanced heart and lung disease.

ISHLT’s annual meeting and academic sessions will be held from April 10th to 13th at the Prague Conference Center in Prague, Czech Republic.

contact:

Jess Burke, California
ISHLT Director of Marketing and Communications

+1.312.224.0015
jess.burke@ishlt.org


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