Christine’s Story

October 5, 2020

Christine is a busy mother of two and a dedicated high school English teacher, directing her school’s internship program for students to gain hands-on and practical experience for transition to college or beyond. She’s a self professed “Zumba Junkie” and enjoys spending time outdoors with her newly adopted rescue dog Sassy. She’s used to going full steam ahead, until she began noticing pain and loss of vision clarity when transitioning to and from direct sunlight.

For Christine, the change in her vision came at a time when she wasn’t sleeping well at night and as she didn’t have a history of vision issues, she tolerated the problem for some time before seeing an ophthalmologist. Her doctor discovered she had Fuch’s Dystrophy and the cells in her corneas were so swollen and crowded she would need emergency laser surgery in her left eye to reduce the pressure and save her sight. Cataracts added to her vision problem, and the trauma to her corneas removing them, led to the need for an immediate cornea transplant in her left eye.

Christine received the transplant using corneal tissue recovered from a donor shortly after their passing. This new cornea has allowed Christine to return to her active lifestyle with better vision and no pain. Eventually, she will have a second surgery on her right eye, but for now her vision and quality of life has improved dramatically.

As Christine puts it: “This surgery is really symbolic to me—I’m really seeing the world through different eyes and I’m so very thankful for the kindness of the donor and their family in making my Gift of Sight possible.”