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Woman Undergoes Testing For Double Hand Transplant

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Dec 3, 2008 6:15 pm US/Eastern

Woman Undergoes Testing For Double Hand Transplant

(KDKA) Sarah Mues has a sense of humor about her disability; she says it's what keeps her strong and in charge of life, not just hers, but the lives of her two sons.

Mues lost both hands at the age of 14 when her body was attacked by a rare bacteria, pneumonococcal sepsis. The infection threatened to kill her.

"They told my parents and my family every night that I wasn't expected to live through the night. I was going to die," she says.

But Mues, now 30-years-old, beat the odds and instead of losing her life, she lost her limbs. The bacteria seeped into her bloodstream and destroyed tissue in her arms and toes.

"The doctor came in and said, 'Sarah we're going to have to take your hands and toes off.' I said, 'Um, no,'" says Mues.

A typical response from a teen, but there was little choice. So the vibrant, energetic, piano-playing girl spent the rest of her teenage years re-learning basic daily tasks.

Today, Mues is very capable of taking care of herself and her children.

"I can still play the piano, pretty well. I mean, I type 35 words per minute with my elbows," she says. 

But while on a trip to Chicago this September, she was having lunch at an outdoor deli when a man noticed her. That man was a surgeon from UPMC.

"He came up to me and says, 'I don't want to intrude, but I want to introduce myself. My name is Dr. Manders, tomorrow morning … I'm going to a conference where the head doctor and professor at the University of Pittsburgh is speaking about hand transplants."

Mues went to the conference and met Dr. Andrew Lee. She says she learned she could once again have hands through a double hand transplant.

Since then, Mues says she has been to UPMC for extensive testing. If further testing goes well, she says that she may become eligible for the transplant, and once again be able to feel the world.

"If I did this, I would be able to hold my kids," Mues says. "Intertwining your fingers, there's nothing ... there's not a feeling like that in the world."

Mues has to complete additional testing, which includes staying in Pittsburgh for at least a week. The cost is $3,000 for the stay. So she is back home in Redman, Oregon, trying to raise the money to afford it.

If and when Mues is cleared for the operation, she says she and her children will move to Pittsburgh to wait for the availability of donor hands. 

More Information:  NewHandsForSarah.com


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