Lisa Colon has always been an active person.
Born in Brooklyn to Caribbean immigrants, she ran cross-country in high school. Years later, after graduating from the University of Miami’s law school, she picked up long-distance running again. Before long, she found herself racing her first Chicago Marathon in 2006. With a goal of running a marathon on each continent, she soon checked off races in Brazil and Greece.
Colon was training for a marathon in Thailand, though, when she noticed her times ticking higher and higher. It was the first sign that something wasn’t right — and the start of a years-long health battle that ended in a heart transplant at age 49.
Colon, now 50 and a partner at the Saul Ewing law firm in Fort Lauderdale, shared her cardiac care journey with FLORIDA TREND.
FLORIDA TREND: How did you realize something was wrong with your heart?
COLON: My body was not responding as it would to running, and my times were slowing down. A friend suggested I check my thyroid. My primary care physician did the workup and said, “Something’s not right with your EKG. I suggest you see a cardiologist as soon as you can.” After several diagnostic exams, I ended up being diagnosed in 2013 with a rare and genetic cardiomyopathy called arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy.
FT: How did your life change after that?
COLON: I was told to stop running because endurance sports exacerbate the disease. I lived this new normal, trying to find different things to enjoy.
Last year, I started to feel really tired — that’s not abnormal for the disease, but I was not looking well. Eventually, a heart failure specialist at Cleveland Clinic found that my right ventricle was not working right. He didn’t think there were any more therapies they could give me. He held my hand and told me I needed a heart transplant. I was obviously not expecting that news that day. That was out of left field for me.
FT: How does the heart transplant process work?
COLON: I was told I would be presented to the heart transplant committee. They look at your chart and evaluate whether you are a good candidate for a transplant. I was told I would hear back very soon.
On June 22, 2023, I was actually in trial when I got the call. I ran to my office on my lunch break and was told I was accepted on the transplant list and listed as a Status 4. (Status levels range from the most critical at Status 1 to the least critical at Status 7.) Obviously, there’s no guarantee of when you will get the heart. So, I tried to prepare for what that would look like. You’re in limbo, but your life is still going on. You don’t stop.
FT: When did you know you were getting a new heart?
COLON: On July 9, just 17 days later at 4:30 p.m., I got the call that the wonderful thoracic surgeons at Cleveland Clinic had accepted a heart on my behalf. On July 10, around 9 p.m. or 10 p.m., I had my heart transplant. ... When my heart came out of my body, the thoracic surgeon told my family that my heart was “soon to expire.” Those were the words he used. I am acutely aware that I got a second chance at life, that I was hanging on by a thread and didn’t even know. I was the perfect candidate to go to sleep and not wake up.
I don’t know anything about the person who gave me the heart. There’s not a day that goes by that I don’t think of them. What an amazing gift of life they gave me. It’s only because of them that I am able to have this conversation. I would love to meet their family and let them know the heart went to a decent human being that cherishes and loves them, even though I don’t know them.
FT: What was the recovery process like?
COLON: I had a really decent recovery. The first couple of months were very rough, as expected. I spent 16 days in the hospital, about seven of those being in ICU. I had a second admission for some undiagnosed pain, but we believe it’s post-transplant neuropathy.
Anybody that’s had a transplant goes through different things. Recovery is not linear. It’s definitely a roller coaster. But by all measures, I had a really textbook recovery. The heart’s doing really well. I went back to work within six months, and after cardiac rehab, I started running. I am now preparing to run the Miami half-marathon in February, which is American Heart Month. And I plan to run my beloved New York Marathon, which I’ve completed twice before, this year in my hometown.
FT: What do you want people to learn from your journey?
COLON: First, you have to be a good keeper of your body — treat it well, eat well, exercise. I say that because, since I did those things, it made my heart transplant easier. Also, listen to your body and go to your doctor. It’s also great to have an EKG as a baseline for your heart. You’ve got to arm yourself with information to drive your medical care.
I’m acutely aware that every day moving forward is a gift. While I continue to heal, I also try to appreciate each day and not take it for granted. My purpose is to share the experience of having a heart transplant and also the story of resiliency. I was told in 2013, when I got diagnosed, that I would never run again. But here I am running. My community, my social life was running. I lost that right at some point — and now I’m gaining that back. I ran my first 5K seven months post-transplant. That’s a gift. That’s a miracle.