There wasn’t much hope eight months ago for a Randfonteiner who needed a heart but that all changed one Tuesday last month.
Candice Eno, 33 – who was previously on the Herald‘s front page in October last year – raising awareness for organ donations was on the urgent heart transplant list for 22 months up until Tuesday, 12 April when she got her new heart.
Candice suffered from Ebstein’s anomaly which is an abnormality in the tricuspid valve of the heart and as a result she was on oxygen for two years.
“The phone call I got saying they found a heart for me was quite something. I’ll never forget it.
“The transplant coordinator at Netcare Milpark Hospital called the house and spoke to my mom. She asked what we were doing and my mom told her then they casually asked if we don’t want to come to the hospital to come and get my new heart,” Candice said.
Candice currently has to wear a mask and stay indoors for the next three months to prevent any infections from forming as that will cause the heart to reject.
She is also on immunosuppressants – also called anti-rejection drugs, are used to prevent the body from rejecting a transplanted organ – which makes it that much more difficult. So far she has been for her first biopsy to see if the heart is taking and everything is still fine.
The medication she has to take now and most likely for the rest of her life costs around R40 000 a month. The amount might seem shocking but is nothing in comparison to a life that was essentially saved thanks to organ donation.
Eddie Krog, the aspiring DA candidate who stood by Candice in creating awareness for organ donation in Randfontein said the heart could not come at a better time as her heath was rapidly deteriorating.
I couldn’t do anything without getting tired and I wasn’t expected to live for the past six months,” Candice said.
“One donor can save up to seven lives. There are over 4 000 people waiting for a life-saving organ. In South Africa we have a serious shortage of donors. It’s free to register. You don’t have to pay anything,” Candice said.
Eddie said creating awareness for organ donation will remain on the top of his list both personally and as a future DA candidate.
Candice just has to get past the next three to six months to be completely home free and already she has an incredible lust for life and is experiencing many things people take for granted for the first time.
“Before I had this heart I lost most of my senses, my hearing, my sense of smell, taste and touch. It’s almost overwhelming. I even need to remember how to breathe properly. And finally I have warm feet. I have never had warm feet,” she said.
Candice would like to thank God and everyone in Randfontein for all their prayers and support because ultimately, she said, that is what got her through it all.
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