Sergio, South Africa

I am a two- time cancer survivor, a COVID-19 survivor who spent three months in ICU, and a lung transplant recipient. Just seven months after my transplant, I am living a normal life again.

I am a medical practitioner ( anaesthesiologist). My journey began at the age of 45, when I was diagnosed with neuroendocrine cancer, I was completely asymptomatic. I underwent surgery and treatment, followed by 5 years of oncology follow-up. In time, I achieved a complete cure.

In 2019, life challenged me once more. I was diagnosed with follicular lymphoma. This meant further surgery and chemotherapy. After two long years, I reached total remission.

Then, in september 2021. while working on the front lines, I contrated COVID-19. My condition deteriorated rapidly and I spent three months in ICU, placed in an induced coma and mechanical ventilated. Agains all odds, I survived.

Recovery was slow and demanding. Nine months later,I returned to work, dependent on supplemental oxygen. For the next three years ,oxygen became part of my daily life. Eventually, my condition forced me to be medically boarded.

Hope arrived in june 2025, when I received a lung transplant at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town. Today, only seven months after I am living a normal grateful life