Colombia soccer star Radamel Falcao Garcia became even more of a national hero after securing a successful heart transplant surgery on a 17-year old boy from the north of the country.
Falcao, Colombia’s most decorated soccer player of the past decade, has made the headlines this week for reasons unrelated to sports.
Thanks to the message the Manchester United striker sent out through his social media profiles in search of a donor, John Andes Uyaban, a 17-year old from Santander state, found a new heart, after years of searching for the right match.
The Colombian goal-scorer was asked to help the youngster by his family after they had trouble finding an organ meeting all conditions.
“Falcao said immediately he’d help the task of seeking a new heart for the boy. We do not know how it arrived. And who brought it. The important thing was that it helped my son,” said the mother of the patient.
According to the doctors from the clinic in the northern town of Bucaramanga, the new heart arrived from Medellin. Sadly, it must have come from a boy same age who was recently deceased. However, no further details on the donor have been revealed.
“The excitement was immense when we first heard the news. My son admires Falcao. He is his role model, because of how well he has done in life. John loves sports and practices Taekwondo. He has the rare type 0 negative blood group and the heart had to be compatible and of similar age. Thankfully, everything went well,” explained the boy’s mother to “El Universal” newspaper.
A week after the surgery, the patient’s vital signs are stable and within normal limits.
Falcao’s help was essential as the time was running out for the seriously ill teenager.
Sources
- Falcao ayudó a conseguir corazón para trasplante a joven en Bucaramanga (Caracol)
- Falcao García ayudó a conseguir trasplante de corazón para joven en Santander (El Universal)
