California college student goes home for the holidays after receiving a heart transplant at Northwestern Medicine

CHICAGO - December 20, 2024 - In October 2024, Korey Meyers was studying computer science at California State University Dominguez Hills in Carson, Calif., when he suddenly felt out of breath. He would get winded walking down the street and had unusual swelling in his legs and feet. The 20-year-old from Chicago, Ill., was always active and even played football in high school. This was the first time he had issues with his health.

When Meyers’ symptoms got worse, he was admitted to a hospital in Los Angeles and was diagnosed with heart failure. He quickly flew home to Chicago to be closer to family and get treatment from specialists at Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute.

Preparing for a new heart

Meyers was admitted to Northwestern Memorial Hospital on November 18. He was seen by Sarah Chuzi, MD, a heart failure and transplant specialist at Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute, who put him on the transplant list for a new heart.

After just a few weeks of waiting, a heart became available. On December 3, Meyers went in for his transplant with Duc Pham, MD, a cardiac surgeon at Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute. Because Meyers recovered so quickly, he was discharged to go home on December 19 – just one week before Christmas – and got to ring the transplant bell.

“The silver lining to having heart failure and a heart transplant when you’re young is that people tend to be really resilient and have smooth recoveries,” said Dr. Chuzi. “Korey came into our hospital extremely sick. We’re so lucky we were able to give him this gift of life and it’s especially meaningful that he gets to go home right before Christmas.”

Meyers is now looking forward to spending the holidays with his family and taking care of his new heart.

“This will be the best Christmas for me,” said Meyers. “I’m looking forward to doing better with my new heart. I’ll make sure I exercise more, eat better, and I’ll cherish this heart for the rest of my life.”

More about heart failure

Heart failure occurs when the heart struggles to pump enough blood and oxygen through the rest of the body. The condition impacts 6.7 million Americans and is responsible for about 14% of deaths in the United States.

Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute (BCVI) has teams that specialize in heart failure treatment and transplantation. The BCVI is ranked among the best hospitals in the world for heart failure and is currently conducting clinical trials to improve patient outcomes.

To learn more about heart and vascular treatments, visit nm.org/heart.