A 34 year old man Trinh Dinh Dat said that his family members has set up a memorial altar to commemorate the donor who gifted him the heart for seven years on May 29. Personally, he regards this day as his second birthday. Despite his tall and athletic stature, he had once been at death's door with end-stage heart failure.
Illness struck Dat when he was in his early 20s, the most vibrant period of his life. He developed dilated cardiomyopathy, leading to severe heart failure. Every time he climbed stairs or exerted himself, he would become short of breath and experience chest pain. Dat was shocked and panicked. His work, relationships, and future seemed to collapse overnight.
He remembered he went to the hospital frequently as he had constant emergencies, and the risk of death was increasing as he couldn't breathe and had to sleep sitting up every night. Those were the most painful and desperate days of his life. He recounted his condition deteriorated rapidly, and a heart transplant became his only chance of survival at the age of 27. The young man dared not hope for the impossible. His life was dwindling day by day.
A turning point came when Cho Ray Hospital admitted an 18-year-old girl who was critically injured in a traffic accident with a high probability of death. Overcoming their grief, the bereaved girl's family agreed to donate her organs to save other critically ill patients.
Cho Ray Hospital soon set up a scientific council which declared about brain death carrying out legal procedures for donation and selecting appropriate organ recipients. At that time, there were about 40 people on the heart transplant waiting list, but only Trinh Dinh Dat was a match for the donor's heart based on medical criteria.
Ho Chi Minh City-based Cho Ray Hospital successfully performed its first heart transplant on May 29, 2017 along with two kidney transplants and one liver transplant from the young woman's donated organs.
He said that waking up after the transplant surgery, he felt a miracle when touching the left chest. The life had been given a second chance, all thanks to the selfless gift and the skill of the medical team. A year later, he resumed his life, contributing to his family and rebuilding the life that illness had threatened.
The results of regular check-ups at the hospital over the years show that his heart is functioning well. He often goes on long business trips or does strenuous activities without encountering any health problems. In addition to his main job, Dat sells some specialties to earn more money to help people who were once desperate like him. That is also his way of repaying life.
In the late night on August 24, 2024, hundreds of medical professionals from Saint Paul General Hospital, Viet Duc Hospital in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City University of Medicine and Pharmacy Hospital remained awake as they performed surgical procedures following the family's consent to donate the organs of a young man who had been declared brain dead.
As soon as the heart was removed from the donor's body, the medical team swiftly transported it in a specialized container to a plane bound for Ho Chi Minh City. At the dawn of August 25, 2024, the heart began to beat for the first time in the chest of a 37 year old patient, Le Anh Hieu, after a major surgery at Ho Chi Minh City University of Medicine and Pharmacy Hospital.
According to Nguyen Thi Phuong Thanh, Hieu's wife, her husband had not experienced a restful night's sleep in four years due to heart failure and was unable to engage in vigorous activities. A heart transplant was their only hope for survival. The household had fallen silent as time was running out.
Mrs. Thanh recounted when the doctor informed the family of a suitable heart, they immediately flew to Ho Chi Minh City. Although the chances of survival were minimal, they maintained an unwavering resolve to endure.
Successful transplant operation has brought back the family a healthy husband and father. A short time later, his condition has gradually been better so he could himself go to the southern metropolis for periodic medical checkups. His children now can play with him without fearing that the father would be fatigue like before. Mrs. Thanh expressed her gratitude to the heart donor who has saved his husband and other people suffering organ failures.
Director Dong Van He of the National Organ Donation Coordination Center reported that in 2024, the country was expected to witness over 30 cases of organ donation following brain death, marking the highest number in recent years. This development is a positive sign for the efforts to promote organ donation for saving lives.
More than 90 heart transplants have been successfully performed out of over 9,000 organ transplant cases nationwide. In a race against time, numerous heart transplants conducted across the country have provided new life to patients and their families.
Meanwhile, Head Du Thi Ngoc Thu of the Human Organ Transplant Coordination Unit at Cho Ray Hospital said that the hospital has performed 16 heart transplants from brain-dead donors. The dissemination of moving stories surrounding successful organ donations has significantly contributed to raising public awareness regarding the life-saving potential of this noble act.
As a token of gratitude, Dr. Thu and her colleagues annually visit the families of brain-dead organ donors to burn incense in memory. Recognizing the ethical imperative of this process, medical professionals prioritize the principle of transparency and fairness in organ allocation, with medical suitability serving as the paramount consideration.
The first organ transplant from a brain-dead donor in Vietnam was performed in May 2010. As of December 2024, the country recorded 183 brain-dead organ donors. Recently, the number of brain-dead organ donors has increased but is still very low, among the lowest in the world. Vietnam has performed more than 9,000 organ transplants, but the rate of organ transplants from brain-dead donors is only 6 percent, the rest are from living donors.
