'Dead' Teen Wakes Up Before His Organ Donation

A teenager, who was certified dead after being hit by a van, woke up just hours before his organs were to be donated.

Lewis Roberts, 18, was struck by the vehicle in the town of Leek, England on March 13 and was taken to the Royal Stoke University Hospital. His family was later told that he was brain dead, but the boy fought back and woke up before his life support was turned off, reported New York Post.

Now, a fund-raising appeal has been set up. “After saying our goodbyes to Lewis, close family bravely agreed for his organs to be donated to help the lives of seven other people,” said Chloe Roberts, who has organized the fund-raiser.

"This bought Lewis extra time before his life support machine was turned off. Just hours before Lewis’ surgery, he began to breathe again on his own.”

Roberts called it a "miracle" that any family could wish for after being told he had "zero chance of pulling through."

"After this, Lewis has carried on progressing. He has started to react to pain tests, moving his limbs on his own, and also moving his head from side to side, blinking and also moving his mouth," she said.

According to her, the boy is getting stronger everyday. “Many people have asked to send money for a pint for Lewis. Any money that is sent will be for Lewis when he is home and back on his feet,” she added.

“We would just like to say, as a family, thank you so much and we are very grateful for everyone’s prayers and best wishes for Lewis,” Roberts said.

In another similar incident, five people got organ donations after a a student died. The student, Shane Dineen, was 20, and studied at Staffordshire University. He suffered bleeding in the brain and passed away in January, reported BBC.

A teenage girl received his liver and one of his kidneys went to a 60-year-old man. Dineen's other kidney was given to a 30-year-old woman. A 30-year-old man, on the other hand, received his lungs and a 20-year-old man received his heart.

Royal Stoke University Hospital's staff "worked against extra challenges created by the pandemic" to ensure the operations happened smoothly. "Something good has come out of something truly awful," his mother Vicky Scott said.

She added that the organ donation was not something she had discussed with her son.

"One of our friends had lost their baby due to a failed liver transplant and I knew that Shane was someone who always wanted to help, so I decided to go ahead with it," Scott said adding: "This is the last thing he could do to help and I believe it's what he would have wanted."