Sarah Granados, a mom of three based in North Carolina, has not been able to eat solid foods for over a decade — until now.
In 2012, she underwent surgery to remove her gallbladder due to potential cancer in her body. This kind of procedure wasn’t something out of the ordinary.
Even though the surgery went well, doctors believed she was affected due to Hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, Granados told “Good Morning America.”
This syndrome is “an inherited connective tissue disorder that is caused by defects in a protein called collagen” and can lead to gastrointestinal issues, according to the National Center For Advancing Translational Sciences.
After the surgery, things took a turn for the worst. Granados could not eat solid foods and was placed on a feeding tube.
This led to her second surgery in 2018, which led to the removal of her stomach and also part of her small intestines. An after-effect of being on a feeding tube for six years.
Having had complications from this surgery, Granados said it “sent her into intestinal failure” and “she was diagnosed with intestinal pseudo-obstruction,” per “Good Morning America.” This is “a rare condition in which you have symptoms of intestinal obstruction, but doctors can’t find anything blocking your intestines,” according to the National Institutes of Health.
She then was put on a “total parenteral nutrition” according to “Good Morning America,” which would save her life through delivering nutrients to her body.
At this point, doctors decided that Granados would need a transplant of her gastrointestinal system. This kind of procedure is rare that “only occurs in around 100 patients worldwide each year,” according to Dr. Richard Mangus, who did the surgery for her transplant, per “Good Morning America.”
“I ran into complications almost immediately,” Granados explained. “It was at that time that [doctors] said, ‘You’re either going to need a transplant or your life expectancy is probably only a few years.”
Granados was put on the donor list in 2020 and in 2021 while in the hospital, she received good news. “A donor had been found with a stomach, pancreas and small and large intestines” which was considered a “perfect match” for her according to “Good Morning America.”
Granados explained how she was ready for the worst, “At that point I was having conversations with my family about having my lines actually removed and going into hospice because I was ready to be done”.
“And not because I don’t love my life, and not because I wouldn’t give anything and everything, but because my body was really, really tired and couldn’t stand the thought of living in a hospital anymore,” she continued.
Within 24 hours of that fateful call, she was taken by plane to Indiana Health University Hospital and on Nov. 14, 2021 she endured a serious 10-hour transplant procedure that involved several doctors including Dr. Mangus.
While recuperating from the surgery, Granados has been staying in Indianapolis since November being looked at by doctors.
As she continues to fight for her body to get used to the new transplant, she now has a daily intake of 33 different prescription medications.
Christmas day came and she remembers receiving the gift of being able to finally eat with her family.
“My oldest daughter couldn’t even hardly eat her food because she was crying because she couldn’t believe that we were having a family dinner,” she said.
Hebrews 13:16 says, “Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God” and Granados said that she has thought about her “angel donor” daily since getting her new transplant.
“There’s not an hour that goes by that I’m not very keenly aware that I’m now carrying somebody else. It’s a privilege but it’s also something I take very, very seriously,” she said.
