Transplant Advocate and Patient Celebrates 25 Years of Receiving the Gift of Life
Twenty five years ago this week, Myriam Correa Sherman became the first Hispanic woman to receive a heart transplant at Jackson Memorial Hospital. She was 44 years old at the time and had suffered from heart disease since childhood.
“I felt like my moment had come and that God had answered my prayers,” said Sherman, now 69 and healthy. “I wanted to see my children get married and meet my future grandkids. I didn’t even know if I was going to make it.”
Sherman’s journey towards transplantation actually began when she was 10 years old in Colombia. She came down with rheumatic fever – a disease that can develop due to ineffectively treating strep throat or scarlet fever. It left her with a heart lesion, resulting in tissue damage. Sherman lived a normal life, but monitored her heart condition closely with regular doctor check-ups.
In 1975, she decided to leave Colombia for Miami to pursue her education. Three years later, she came down with the flu and became very ill. Struggling to breathe, she arrived at Jackson Memorial Hospital.
After analyzing her electrocardiogram (EKG), doctors informed her that her heart was not doing well and that she would need open heart surgery to survive.
“It was difficult to receive the news,” Sherman said. “But the attention from the staff and doctors was incredible. I took it upon myself to remain strong, with the idea of living a healthier lifestyle.”
Following her surgery, Sherman focused on taking care of herself. She exercised, pursued a healthy way of life, and continued to work. But her health continued deteriorating.
Nearly 10 years after her first surgery, Sherman required a second open heart surgery. That is when she met UHealth – University of Miami Health System cardiologist E. Joseph Bauerlein, MD, at the Miami Transplant Institute – an affiliation between Jackson Memorial Hospital and the University of Miami.
The best option for her, doctors said, was a heart transplant. After three months on the national transplant waiting list, Sherman received her new heart March 26, 1991 at Jackson Memorial Hospital.
Today, she is healthy, active, and is still Dr. Bauerlein’s patient. She became an advocate and volunteer for organ donation through Life Alliance Organ Recovery Agency, one of the nation’s 58 federally designated organ recovery agencies. Two decades ago, Sherman began hosting monthly group sessions in Spanish at Jackson Memorial Hospital.
“I think the Hispanic community needs someone they can relate to,” Sherman said. “I speak about the process; I guide them and share my story to motivate those that are still on the waiting list.”
Sherman said all of her dreams have come true – because of the gift of life she received 25 years ago.
“I have the privilege today, along with my husband Ronald, to see our children Mario Alberto & Claudia Elizabeth marry their soulmates and see my grandkids Carolina, 19, Natalia 21, and Andres, 19, go through college – all my dreams have come true,” said Sherman.