“I promised my six year old granddaughter I would make it to her sixth birthday and I did."
Robert Regan, a 71-year-old grandfather of three from Lincoln Park, NJ, underwent a double-lung transplant at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center in October 2016. He suffered with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) for years before he was finally listed for transplant. By the time he received the call that there were a pair of lungs available for him, he was homebound and unable to breathe without an oxygen machine.
He went to several hospitals in New York and Pennsylvania before choosing to have his transplant in New Jersey. Newark Beth Israel Medical Center is home to the only certified lung transplant center in the state.
“I promised my six year old granddaughter I would make it to her sixth birthday and I did,” said Mr. Regan. He is now walking every day and ready to welcome his fourth grandchild into the world in July.
Overwhelmed by his experience at the hospital and his second chance at life Robert shared the following in a letter to Newark Beth Israel Medical Center:
“I cannot begin to express how grateful I am, to have been the recipient of a double lung transplant. I am absolutely humbled and indebted to the family that made the self-less decision to donate life, so that I may have the ability to watch my grandchildren grow up. My appreciation for all of the physicians, nurses, aides, therapists and non-medical staff is without measure. You will never understand the extent of my gratitude, but I hope you will commend your staff for a job superbly done.”