Teenageer Christa Chappel is Playing Soccer Again Thanks to Tissue Transplant
At 14, most girls are worrying about school, sports and friends. Christa Chappel, a sophomore at Martin County High School was worried about being able to walk without a brace as support.
“I found myself wondering if I was ever going to get better,” Christa said.
During a high school soccer game against a rival team, Christa tore the Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) in her right knee. She was in excruciating pain when an ambulance took her to Vero Beach Hospital. She soon found out she needed a patella tendon implant to replace her torn ACL and help her walk normally again.
“I was really in shock with my injury,” Christa said. “It was the first time I had been hurt enough not to play.”
When an ACL replacement is needed, a person has two options.
They can either use part of their own patella tendon or use one from a human donor. Due to Christa’s young age, using her own tendon was not an option since she was still growing. She was immediately put on a list for a human tendon. For two months she waited. Several times she was called into surgery only to be told that the tendon was not available.
“I was such an emotional wreck when my surgeries were canceled,” Christa said. “I know this is not life or death surgery, but to me it was. I had been playing soccer since I was 5, and sitting on the sidelines was not an option.”
Christa’s mom, Amy, said that it broke her heart to see her daughter’s disappointment when the surgeries were canceled.
One night Amy decided to take things into her own hands, searching the internet to find more information on the tendon graft. That is when she found the Southeast Tissue Alliance.
She sent an email to the Southeast Tissue Alliance and didn’t wait long before she heard a response letting her know they were looking for a donor tendon for Christa.
“That was good enough for me,” Christa said. “Some light was brought back into my life.”
The Southeast Tissue Alliance contacted Christa’s surgeon and had a tendon secured that week so Christa was finally able to have the surgery she had been waiting for just in time for her 15th birthday.
“It was the best birthday present anyone could have given me,” she said. “I had a smile on my face that wouldn’t go away. I thank the Southeast Tissue Alliance and especially the donor for that.”
Four months later, Christa is walking without a brace and is even running again. Christa recently made the cheerleading squad and a state cup soccer team.
“I know the donation Christa received was not a vital organ like a heart, liver or kidney,” Amy said. “But it has extreme significance in her life and will allow her to pursue her athletic ambitions to the fullest.”
Christa points out four heroes in her life that helped her in her time of need: her mom, her physical therapists, the Southeast Tissue Alliance, and the family of her donor.
Christa is so grateful for the donation she received. “Being a donor can mean new life for someone else,” she said.
Since her surgery she has been able to get her drivers learning permit. “I made sure my license said I was an organ and tissue donor,” Christa said. “Maybe someday I’ll be able to help someone as someone has helped me.”
Christa’s mom, Amy, thanks the donor families. “From the pain and sorrow they have experienced truly comes hope, life, and higher quality of life.”
Read more of the stories of some individuals who have been touched by donation.
Christa Chappel | Dale Hiedeman | Georgia Poplawski | Paula Ryder | Cole Diepersloot
