DETROIT – For decades a Metro Detroit neurosurgeon saved the lives of countless patients. Now he desperately needs a liver transplant.
Three months after introducing you to Dr. Ken Casey, we have some good news.
“He sounded positive, upbeat, emotionally this is definitely what he’s been waiting for,” said Dr. Casey’s daughter Laura Casey.
Dr. Casey gives the thumbs up in the photo seen in the video player above before heading into surgery for a liver transplant.
“Thank you very much to the donor, whoever you are,” Laura Casey said. “This is getting my dad back.”
It’s been months of waiting and hoping a potential donor would come forward and be a match.
“There were days that we just didn’t know what the outcome would be,” Laura Casey said. “There were days that he would be in bed all day and not get up.”
We first met Dr. Casey back in February.
Read: Metro Detroit neurosurgeon urgently needs liver transplant from living donor
For more than 40 years, the beloved Beaumont Neurosurgeon had saved countless lives. Now he was in desperate need of a liver transplant.
The family turned to Local 4 and spread the word on social media.
Their efforts finally came to fruition.
“I believe between the coverage with you guys and the Facebook page being out there, that’s how that person found out, came forward, and stepped to the plate,” Laura Casey said.
Last week the family got a call about a potential donor, which prompted Dr. Casey to return to the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, where he’s currently being treated.
He’ll be back home in a month, thanks to a donor they haven’t met, if all goes well.
“Whoever you are, thank you, thank so grateful,” Laura Casey said.
Dr. Casey is expected to spend about 10 days in the ICU. Then spend a few days in the hospital to be monitored by the doctors, who will see how his body responds to the procedure.
