Arizona woman's 3-year wait for an intestine shows the US organ transplant system's complexity
Katherine Screws, an intestine transplant recipient, poses for a photo in Phoenix, Ariz., on April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Shelby Lum)
A car crash destroyed Katherine Screws’ small intestine, leaving her unable to eat, dependent on IV nutrition and often too sick to get out of bed. But the Phoenix woman clung to her hospital’s prediction that she could get an intestine transplant in about six months.
That was way off. She wouldn’t get one until three years after the crash.
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