(COLUMBUS, Ohio) – For most children and adults, a case of the flu can be uncomfortable but manageable, with typical symptoms and recovery. Unfortunately, influenza can be severe and cause life-threatening complications. For 16-year-old Maggie Rising, her experience with the flu escalated into respiratory failure, permanent infection and scarring of the lungs and the eventual need for a double-lung transplant.
“While influenza is very common, it is still unknown why some patients develop severe illness from it, and cases such as Maggie’s are very rare,” said Stephen Kirkby, MD, medical director of the Lung and Heart-Lung Transplant Program at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. “Any lung transplant is extremely challenging, and it requires a lot of multidisciplinary care. We are one of the few places in the world able to offer life-saving lung transplantation to children who need it, like Maggie.”
Maggie was hospitalized for nine months, during which time she received several months of mechanical ventilation and other modes of life-sustaining support. She received her double-lung transplant in February 2023. Today, Maggie’s new lungs are helping her return to the things she loves most: her clarinet and her high school marching band.
“Life after transplant can be hard, and Maggie is a great example of how this surgery allowed her to not just survive but get back to living normally,” said Dr. Kirkby. “That’s really what makes this so special, knowing she’s back doing to the things that any teenager would want to do.”
“I was so focused on living that I didn’t have time to think about anything else, and now, because of all the care I’ve gotten, I can do everything I want to do with only minimal help,” said Maggie. “I finally get to be home with my family for the holidays after an entire year of not being home. I couldn’t do that last year, and the fact that I can now is truly a gift.”
Maggie is a Patient Champion for the 2023 “Light Up the Lawn, Light Up a Life” campaign at Nationwide Children’s. To get involved, click here.
To learn more about Maggie’s story, click here.