The 32 year old Enniskillen woman wed her Australian husband, Greg Piergrosse, on Friday at Enniskillen Townhall and celebrated with family and friends at the Ceili House in Monea.

One year ago, Karen underwent a double lung transplant on January 22nd 2018 at the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle-upon-Tyne after she was diagnosed with a rare genetic condition called pulmonary surfactant metabolism dysfunction type two – a condition which means her lungs are not lubricated enough to allow oxygen to pass through properly.

Karen’s condition is so rare, she is thought to be the only person in Ireland or the UK to have this condition, and prior to her life saving surgery, she was receiving oxygen 24 hours a day as her lungs were only functioning at 20%.

Karen’s wedding day had previously been cancelled twice due to her ill health, but last week, she and the ‘love of her life’ were finally able to tie the knot!

Speaking to the Herald, Karen said “Our day was magical – a dream come true! We were delighted that we could go ahead with the wedding and relax a bit more. I felt amazing! To finally put on my wedding dress and have all our family and friends celebrating our marriage was wonderful. 

“Our wedding was small with all the important people in our life there. The people that have lived and supported us throughout everything. We were just so glad to be able to share our special day with them all.”

To make the day extra special for the couple, Greg’s parents flew in from Australia to be in Fermanagh to celebrate. It was a bittersweet day for Karen and her family as they remembered Christine, Karen’s sister who also suffered from lung problems, and sadly passed away when she was 27. 

Since Karen’s surgery, she has been going from strength to strength and still attends the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle for check ups. 

“My health has been stable. I went to Newcastle two weeks ago to have my one year bronchoscopy and biopsies. It was an anxious time for us all, but thankfully all of the tests came back clear and no rejection.” 

Karen has been documenting her journey on her ‘My Lung Story’ Facebook page in a bid to raise awareness of the importance of organ donation.