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At the age of 30 he can finally enjoy things other people take for granted – taking a full breath of air, enjoying a cool breeze without worrying about getting sick, being strong enough to put in a full day of work.
It’s strange to get cold and not worry about it, Andries van der Merwe says. “Before the lung transplant I had to put on a jacket immediately to avoid infection and disease. Now it’s nice. I can get cold, I can walk in the rain without it being a big deal.”
Andries was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis when he was three years old and his lung capacity was just 17% when he received a new set of lungs in 2019. “I’m 100% today,” he says.
