Dying Boy Gets Lung From Mom, Another From Dad

Two German parents donated a lung each to save their 12-year-old son. The boy suffers from cystic fibrosis, and his situation became so dire in April that he was hooked up to both a ventilator and a heart-lung machine, reports Germany's The Local. With no donor in sight, his parents decided to step in.

Fortunately, both Mom and Dad were compatible blood types and had lungs larger than their son's, a prerequisite for donation. Both parents recovered quickly from the six-hour surgery. Mari had to spend 155 days in the hospital, but now can breathe more easily. His prognosis and quality of life are much improved, though his cystic fibrosis hasn't disappeared. (More lung transplants stories.)