Update: With Speedy Recovery, Katie Fleming Heads Home Next Week

When 20-year-old Katie Fleming received a double-lung transplant on May 14, her doctor said she would have to stay near the Stanford University Medical Center campus for two or three months as part of her recovery.

Fleming has been doing so well, however, that she will come home to Danville next week, just about three weeks after her surgery.

"It is a miracle," said Fleming's aunt, Marylou Ritter. "The doctor said the donor was a perfect match, the same age, size and blood type. That was pretty exciting."

Fleming, who graduated from San Ramon Valley high in 2008 and lives in downtown Danville with her mom, Cathy, said her body is "accepting the lungs really well."

Fleming was diagnosed at age one with cystic fibrosis—an inherited disease that causes the body to produce sticky mucus that clogs the lungs and inhibits the breakdown and absorption of food.

After a three-week stay in the ICU in April, Fleming moved to the top of the lung-transplant list at Stanford, taking oxygen 24 hours a day from a breathing tube and spending up to five hours each day in treatments to remove the mucus from her lungs, as she awaited the call about the double-lung donor.

All that has changed now.

"I don't have to do any treatments, no oxygen, my whole day is opened up now," said Fleming. "Everything is just great."

She'll still visit the doctor twice a week for blood work and X-rays, and takes several medications to prevent infections. Since her immune system is compromised, she needs to avoid germs and wear a mask in public.

"It is all a small price to pay so I can breathe now," said Fleming.

Before the transplant, walking up the stairs to her second-floor apartment was difficult, making it hard for her to go out. Now she walks freely.

"I just went home for a visit a couple of days ago," said Fleming. "I just jammed up the stairs and through the door."

With a large scar from the surgery she is trying to take it easy.

"I don't want to overdo it," she said."They want me to be really cautious."

Fleming is excited that doctors gave her the green light to visit Danville on Saturday, to see friends at Primo's. The restaurant, where she worked as a waitress for four years, is holding a fund-raising event for her post-transplant expenses not covered by insurance. Wait-staff will donate all of their tip money that evening and Primo's owner John Rhoades will donate a percentage of all sales that evening.

Post-transplant expenses not covered by insurance are estimated at $40,000. So far $33,000 has been raised through other events and donations.

The fund-raiser at Primo's is Saturday, June 4 from 4 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at 298 Hartz Ave. in Danville.