Swiss man visits Philadelphia months after life-changing hand transplant: "It is still a miracle"
A patient from Switzerland is visiting Philadelphia and returning to the hospital that changed his life.
Texting on his phone for the first time in 17 years, for Luka Krizanac, is a milestone, along with being able to pick up a bottle of water.
"It gives me so much joy to be able to do that completely on my own," Krizanac said.
The 29-year-old from Switzerland is back in Philadelphia at Penn Medicine months after having a double-hand transplant.
"I started hoping for this as a child," Krizanac said.
He says when he was 12 years old, a case of strep throat wasn't properly treated and turned into a deadly sepsis infection.
His hands and legs were amputated to save his life. Prosthetics worked for his legs, but not his hands.
"You need your hands to survive, you need it for the most basic independence in life," Krizanac said.
His family turned to the city of independence and the world-renowned transplant team at Penn to give Krizanac his dream.
"Regaining hands after 17 years, I don't think there is a bigger dream than that," he said.
It took years and a long interruption with the pandemic, but the family moved to Philly in the fall to wait for the call that finally came from the Gift of Life.
Finding a good hand donor is especially complicated; there has to be a match for not only the blood type but also skin color, size and age.
"With [the] hand, there are a lot of structures that need to be hooked up," Dr. Benjamin Chang with Penn Medicine said.
Chang was part of the Penn team that performed the 10-hour surgery. Now, Krizanac is slowly regaining mobility with his new hands and can feel hot and cold water and texture.
"I am regaining function every week, every month, but right now I still need a lot of help," Krizanac said.
Krizanac has moved back to Zurich; this is his first time back at Penn since the transplant.
Chang said that as the nerves continue to grow, Krizanac will get more function and feeling in his hands.
"It is still a miracle today to have two hands basically because I did not have that for almost 17 years," Krizanac said.
As for what he would say to the donor family who helped reinvent his life, Krizanac said he's full of gratitude.
"I would want them to know they changed not just my life but my family's life forever, and for that, we are deeply grateful," he said.
Looking forward to a new life and thankful for his time in the City of Brotherly Love.
