In Good Hands
ROAD RUNNING
First Marathon Signed , Sealed & De ( liver ) ed
Having undergone a life-changing liver transplant in 2022 , Joburg-based Coreen Walstra has used running as part of her recovery process , building up to her marathon debut at the recent Sanlam Cape Town Marathon . She crossed the finish line in five hours and 46 minutes , and is now fired up to continue her running journey to next year ’ s Totalsports Two Oceans Ultra . This is her inspirational story .
I
was diagnosed with Chronic Active Auto- Immune Hepatitis just after I turned one in 1990 . I was very jaundiced for several months after birth , underwent numerous tests , and eventually it was pinned down to this . Auto-immune hepatitis means that my own body was rejecting my liver , and my parents were initially told by my ( then ) doctor that I probably won ’ t make the age of five , but regardless of me being sick , they needed to still treat me like a healthy child . I underwent regular blood tests , as well as a liver biopsy at a few months old , and the blood tests continued throughout my schooling . I had a really healthy childhood , though , despite still living with the disease . I rowed and ran cross country throughout high school , and lived a great life .
Coreen with liver transplant specialist and gastroenterologist , Dr Bilal Bobat
In September 2019 , my health took a horrible turn . I was running a temperature , had really bad ascites ( fluid retention in the belly ), and an infection . I called my doctor , Dr J . F . Botha at Sandton Clinic , and he admitted me into Sandton Clinic . During my stay there , he told me that he could no longer take care of me as his patient – I had been with him for 10 years – and I was going to be transferred to the team at the Wits Donald Gordon Research Hospital , where they would take care of me and help get me onto the liver transplant list .
This was mind-blowing . When I met Dr Botha in 2009 , he had mentioned a liver transplant eventually , but I never thought that “ eventually ” would ever arrive . My parents had been the two people in my life that understood more about my liver condition than I did , and because I was pretty healthy growing up , it was something that I never really gave much thought to . But now it became something that was at the forefront of my mind , and my life , and there was no way that I could ignore it anymore .
In Good Hands
We arrived at Donald Gordon and we were told that over the next few days , I would meet my full team . That consisted of a transplant coordinator , a gastroenterologist , a dietician , a psychologist , a physio , and everyone else in the hospital that just rallies behind their patients . I also met my assigned liver transplant specialist and gastroenterologist , Dr Bilal Bobat . What a legend of a human ! We have an awesome relationship , and I am so grateful for him .
Over my first weekend at Donald Gordon , I also met a doctor that is part of the gastroscopy liver transplant team , Prof Adam Muhamed . He wasn ’ t my assigned doctor , but he was on call that weekend , and we had an honest chat about how strict I was about my meds , and what I understood about my health . We also had a conversation about sports , and I told him about my previous rowing ventures , and that I loved running . He made me promise then that I would run the Two Oceans Ultra Marathon with him after my liver transplant - whenever that may be .
I was in hospital for three weeks that September , with numerous tests to get me listed on the transplant list . It was an incredibly daunting experience – to be honest , it scared me shitless at times – but the amount of support from the people around me was incredible . It really takes a village to help people get through rough times , and I am so grateful for every single person that played a role in all of it . It was during this time that I also learned about living liver organ donations .
In a nutshell , a living donor can donate a portion of their liver , and their liver will regrow back to its initial size . Of course , a living donor has to meet quite a few requirements before a transplant can take place .
18 ISSUE 174 | www . modernathlete . co . za