FBI helps woman defy the odds of obtaining 2nd lung transplant

By Stephanie Stahl, Brad Nau

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    MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Pennsylvania (KYW) — The FBI helped a Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, woman defy the odds of obtaining a second lung transplant.

Jen Dunlea, 22, is back home in Narberth after rehab in New York, where she had a second lung transplant that many doctors said wouldn’t work.

“The recovery’s been tough, but also, I’ve exceeded expectations,” Dunlea said.

CBS Philadelphia first talked to the cystic fibrosis patient in June when time was running out.

“I’m a special case. Because I’m a redo it’s riskier, takes longer, there’s more surgical complications,” Dunlea said.

NYU Langone was the only hospital that would accept her case.

“When you look at Jen on paper, she had a lot of complications after her initial transplant. She definitely had some risk factors,” said Dr. Stephanie Chang of the NYU Langone Transplant Institute.

Chang was not put off by the operation’s challenge, but finding suitable lungs for transplant was a bigger issue.

Jen Dunlea and her mom, Laurel Dunlea, never dreamed the new lungs would come from a direct donation.

“What happened is extremely rare. It’s almost unheard of getting a direct donation,” Chang said.

Through a friend, the Dunleas learned that someone in the FBI died and that the family wanted the organs to go to someone in the FBI. Jen Dunlea knew just who to call.

“I was like, Uncle Steve, I really need your help,” Dunlea said.

And the lungs were a good match for Jen Dunlea. The organs were flown from Virginia to New York for the transplant that happened on Aug. 17.

“It was just the most bizarre situation. But it turned out really, really great,” Jen Dunlea said. “And I’m very grateful because, you know, a lot of people don’t get transplants, let alone second transplants.”

Luck mixed in with a lot of determination and some unlikely help from the FBI.

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