HOLDEN, Mo. — A Holden, Missouri woman received an extraordinary gift from a friend. It’s a follow-up to a story we brought you last spring. The friend stepped up when another friend learned she couldn’t give the gift of life.
Early this year, Teresa Moore was willing to give her friend, Chris Hertzog, part of her liver. Hertzog had a life-threatening liver disease resulting from earlier cancer treatment. Moore had tests at Mayo Clinic in Minnesota to see if she was healthy enough to donate. A mammogram revealed the unthinkable. Moore had breast cancer. She couldn’t donate.
“My first reaction was I was worried about Chris ’cause I thought I can’t give my liver now,” said Moore.
But Hertzog had more potential liver givers — 13 altogether.
“To had known so many people would just call and say, ‘I’m interested and I’m willing,’ it’s amazing,” said Hertzog.
It turns out that Chris’ neighbor and friend, Amy Connell, was next up on the list.
“For some reason, the Lord up above called me to do this, and I just stuck with it,” said Connell.
This summer, Connell gave two-thirds of her liver to Hertzog. Being a nurse, Connell knew she’d get her full organ back. The liver can regenerate.
“Usually it’s back between four and six weeks is what the doctor said. And they said you’ll probably be regenerated in three weeks because I was so healthy,” said Connell.
Hertzog is healthy now, too, and that’s giving Moore hope as she battles breast cancer.
“There’s times it’s like oh, but I think, you know, if Chris can go through everything she’s went through, this is a walk in the park for me,” said Moore.
Hertzog says she and Connell are technically no longer friends.
“We’re now relatives ’cause we got a part of each other,” said Hertzog.
And a life has been saved. That’s what friends are for.
Moore said her life was saved, too. She said if she hadn’t had the mammogram as part of the screening to donate, her breast cancer would have been found too late.