April is Donate Life Month, designed to raise awareness about the importance of registering as an organ donor.
It also celebrates those who have saved lives through the gift of donation.
North Texan Anu Philip is a perfect example.
She received a lifesaving kidney transplant in the same week that she got married.
"When they called, I was in shock, because I'm getting married next week!" Philip recalled.
The new bride had been on dialysis and the transplant waiting list since 2012 due to End Stage Renal Disease, and she has dealt with a number of other health issues throughout her life.
When Philip found out that she had been matched with an organ donor to receive a new kidney, she was six days away from marrying her fiance.
Local
The latest news from around North Texas.
Thanks to her transplant surgeon, Dr. Matthew Mulloy and the team at Medical City Dallas, Philip successfully received her new kidney, recovered quickly and was discharged from the hospital the evening before her wedding.
"It just allows her to move forward now with two big milestones accomplished in one week. She was able to get the transplant, get off of dialysis, get married and now really start of a normal life," Mulloy said.
Philip says she's grateful to the donor family.
"Now I feel like I'm part of their family, and every single day they're in my heart," she said.
