Henrie Family

At the age of 46, Russ Henrie noticed that he was struggling to breathe. He was always out of breath and had no idea why. He had been healthy his entire life but noticed something was changing in his body. A year later after much testing, they found out that he has a disease called antitrypsin deficiency disorder, or alpha one. This disease can affect the lungs and liver. Most of the time it affects one or the other, but in Russ' case it has affected both. After 8 years of struggling with this disease, Russ is at the point where he needs a double lung transplant. He is currently on the waiting list at the University of Utah. They have had to relocate in order to be close enough to the University of Utah hospital. Once Russ gets new lungs, they will then begin the process of a liver transplant.