San Antonio couple who first shared their love story on Valentine\u2019s Day<\/a> returned to University Hospital Friday afternoon for a surprise reveal: the liver transplant that saved their lives was part of a rare donor exchange involving strangers.<\/p>\nAt 1 p.m., Santiago Robles and his wife, Elena Perez, met the other patients and donors who made their survival possible. Robles had donated 75 percent of his liver earlier this year after doctors diagnosed Perez with liver cancer \u2014 but what they learned Friday is that his liver was too large to fit her body. Instead, he donated to a stranger, while another living donor stepped up to save Perez.<\/p>\n
\u201cI woke up and I was like, the person that donated to me is somewhere\u2026 she could be next to me, or he could be next to me,\u201d Perez said. \u201cAnd I was like, I don\u2019t have disease or cancer in my liver anymore. There was such relief.\u201d<\/p>\n
The couple\u2019s journey was first told on Valentine\u2019s Day, when Robles described his donation as \u201cthe ultimate act of love.\u201d They thought their story ended there, but Friday\u2019s \u201cReveal\u201d event showed how their fight against cancer was tied to a much larger chain of generosity.<\/p>\n
Robles, 22 at the time of his surgery, said the process was filled with uncertainty but ultimately worth it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was one of the scariest parts of my life, but one of the most rewarding,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019ve never been admitted in the hospital. I don\u2019t like needles. But seeing the outcome, not knowing whose life I saved \u2014 I know that God has a purpose over everyone\u2019s life.\u201d<\/p>\n
For Perez, the road to transplant had been marked by years of setbacks, cancelled surgeries, and moments of doubt. She admitted there was a point she wanted to give up.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI was just tired and drained,\u201d she said. \u201cBut then the day came and I was like, oh my gosh, it\u2019s happening. Living with the disease is like a roller coaster. Everything hits you at once.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Friday, she stood before a crowd of families and staff at University Health and expressed her gratitude.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThank you so much. And thank you to my husband for saying yes and also saving my life. I love you.\u201d<\/p>\n
University Health officials said the couple exchange is rare but life-saving.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cTogether we celebrate the lives forever changed through the gift of living liver donation,\u201d one staff member told the crowd. \u201cI hope that by your experience today that you will share your journeys with the world, because they should definitely hear about it.\u201d<\/p>\n
For Robles and Perez, the reveal not only brought closure but also a new beginning.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOverjoyed\u2026 I don\u2019t have words,\u201d Robles said. \u201cIt\u2019s a blessing to see, months later, the person that I was able to give 70 percent of my liver to, and for us to meet the couple who gave to her. It\u2019s a beautiful moment.\u201d<\/p>\n
The couple said they plan to focus on their future together.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOur biggest thing is we got married and engaged when she had cancer,\u201d Robles said. \u201cNow that she has her liver, and now that we\u2019re moving forward with our life, it\u2019s just continue to live life and be free. Thank God every day that we have on this earth.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A rare donor exchange involving strangers saved a San Antonio couple’s lives through a liver transplant. SAN ANTONIO…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":167792,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5133],"tags":[5229,7202,7203,358,3187,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":{"0":"post-167791","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-antonio","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-san-antonio","10":"tag-sanantonio","11":"tag-texas","12":"tag-tx","13":"tag-united-states","14":"tag-united-states-of-america","15":"tag-unitedstates","16":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","17":"tag-us","18":"tag-usa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115075209657432286","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/167791","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=167791"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/167791\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/167792"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=167791"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=167791"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=167791"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}