Bride moves up wedding day to get lifesaving heart transplant

An Indiana woman was set to be married in four days when she got a call that a lifesaving transplant was available.

Kimberly Woods got the call that a donor heart was available just four days before her wedding. She told her husband-to-be, Tony, and they rushed to the altar.

Woods found out she needed a new heart just six months prior. She had been diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. It’s a heart disease that’s often genetic and can cause the heart muscle to be abnormally thick, making it harder to pump blood.

Her doctor at the Cleveland Clinic said the disease often goes undiagnosed. Most people with the disease have few to no symptoms but may experience shortness of breath, chest pain, or even faint after exercise. Other symptoms include rapid heartbeat, a heart murmur or ankle swelling.

It’s been a little more than five months since Woods received her new heart and she is doing well. The couple plans to hold a large wedding reception in June.

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Woods wore her rehearsal dinner dress for the rushed ceremony and is looking forward to wearing her wedding dress for the first time.

The couple is also planning a honeymoon.

Click here to join the donor registry.