Miracle surgery saves Louisiana woman's life given 24 hours to live after finding entire bowel was blackened and dead

One 24-year-old science student’s life was changed when an investigation into her stomach ache showed her insides were “completely black, necrotic, dead" meaning she had 24 hours to live.

Danielle Perea was enrolled in a clinical lab science master's program and happily, healthily living with her boyfriend in Louisiana when she woke with a severe stomachache she thought was food poisoning.

She then passed "frothy blood" in the bathroom and knew something was seriously wrong so rushed to hospital, where a CT scan showed no issues.

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However, her symptoms persisted, and she sought help at another hospital. Again, doctors dismissed the possibility of a blood clot due to her young age and good health.

By the third day, Danielle was vomiting blood. An exploratory surgery revealed a blood clot in the vessels supplying her intestines, a condition called mesenteric ischemia. The surgeons found extensive dead tissue, too damaged to save.

"They just saw that everything was completely black, necrotic, dead," Danielle told CBS News. Doctors told her boyfriend she had only 24 hours to live, urging him to call her family.

Danielle survived longer than expected, maintaining strong vitals for over a week whilst her mum and boyfriend searched for a solution. The pair found hope at the Cleveland Clinic, home to the largest intestinal transplant program in the nation.

Dr. Kareem Abu-Elmagd accepted Danielle's case, and she was transferred to Ohio. There, her small bowel was mostly taken out, and after multiple procedures, she was added to the transplant list in spring 2019.

For a year and a half, Danielle relied on IV-administered nutrition, unable to eat normally. Prolonged machine support damaged her trachea, requiring another surgery before her transplant. The pandemic complicated matters further, forcing her to pass on a donor organ in April 2020.

Then in June 2020 she was given the call saying she was ready for transplant, Danielle said: "They were just like, 'You need to get to the clinic right away.' It wasn't an option."

The 10-hour surgery was a success, however, after the surgery recovery was diffcilult with frequent fevers leading to hospital readmissions. In January 2021, she underwent another procedure to repair her abdominal wall and reverse her ileostomy.

Now, four years post-transplant, Danielle's life is ostensibly normal despite her taking about 40 pills a day and facing the possibility of a future kidney transplant due to anti-rejection medications.

But she said she leads a "super normal" life, with annual check-ups at the Cleveland Clinic.

At the Cleveland Clinic, they told her, "Just keep living your life. There's nothing stopping you."

"I don't have any restrictions. My incisions healed well. I got married in November," Danielle shared. "We bought a house. It's just all going well."