00:00Surgeons from Henry Ford Health in Detroit sharing word today of a first-ever medical procedure here in Michigan.
00:05A combined intestinal and kidney transplant that has given a Michigan woman a chance for a healthier future.
00:10My body stopped tolerating anything that I would try to put into it.
00:13After nearly two decades of struggling through life-threatening illness, including organ failure,
00:1833-year-old Brianna Derry of Twining is now finally looking forward to a healthy future.
00:23After becoming the first patient in Michigan history to undergo a combined intestinal and kidney transplant.
00:29And while it's been a hard journey, Brianna says she wanted to share her story to provide hope to others.
00:35I mean, this is the first time this has ever been done in Michigan.
00:38So, I mean, that's a prime example that anything is possible.
00:42It doesn't matter what you're dealing with, what sickness you have.
00:45I mean, there's always hope.
00:46Doctors believe Brianna's problems trace back to 2008 when she went on a humanitarian mission to Honduras
00:52and a suspected parasite left her with intestinal issues and eventual surgery.
00:56It's now hoped that combined transplant surgery, which happened back in January,
01:00lessens the odds of her body rejecting the new organs again, leading to a lasting recovery.
01:05John Hewitt, WWJ Newsradio 950.
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