A couple from Middle Tennessee is embracing a renewed sense of hope and health this holiday season after receiving life-changing medical procedures. Victoria and Wayne Thornton, who faced significant health challenges, recently underwent a kidney transplant and a double-bypass heart surgery, respectively, at the same hospital on the same day.
Victoria Thornton had been waiting nearly three years for a kidney transplant. Her condition required extensive home dialysis, which significantly impacted her daily life. In early November 2023, her husband Wayne underwent a critical double-bypass open-heart surgery at Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital in Nashville. Wayne described the procedure, stating, “I had to have them crack the chest and jumper around the blocked arteries.”
While Wayne was recovering in the intensive care unit, Victoria visited him before returning home for the night. At 02:30 on the morning following his surgery, she received a call that would alter their lives. Initially fearing the worst, Victoria was surprised to hear the voice on the other end say, “Miss Thornton, we have a kidney to offer you.” This unexpected news came as a beacon of hope after years of waiting.
The timing of the transplant was astonishing, even to the medical professionals involved. Dr. Jacfranz Guiteau, the kidney transplant surgeon, expressed his disbelief at the coincidence of both surgeries occurring in the same hospital on the same day. He remarked, “For her husband to have such a major operation, not only on the same day but in the same hospital, was really a rare occurrence.”
Before her surgery, Victoria and Wayne shared an emotional moment, allowed to embrace before the procedure. They spent several days recovering in the same hospital, separated only by one floor. “My daughter would go upstairs, take care of him for a while, and then come back downstairs and give me a report,” Victoria explained.
The couple was discharged on the same day, marking a significant milestone in their recovery journey. Victoria described the experience as “the best Christmas present anyone could have given me.” With their health restored, the Thorntons are eager to reclaim the life they had previously set aside due to their medical challenges.
Victoria’s successful surgery was made possible through organ donation, a crucial aspect of her recovery journey. The couple now looks forward to a future filled with possibilities, emphasizing that they no longer need any Christmas presents; their health is the greatest gift of all.
For more information on organ donation, Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital provides resources and guidance.
