José Luis Rodríguez: El Puma will roar again, ‘stronger than ever before.’
José Luis Rodríguez, better known as “El Puma,” entered the room walking hand in hand with his wife Carolina. His emotions were bubbling to the surface.
“How nice to see you again! I want to thank God who performed this miracle and for having used this team of doctors to make it happen, “said the singer, holding back the tears. “But I also want to thank the donor and his family, who do not know who they are, and Carolina, who has given herself body and soul to this difficult journey.”
“I have passed from death to life. To return to life is to be born again. I feel that breathing is something extraordinary. And to those who are as disoriented as I was, I tell them to come to Jackson,” added the artist, who considers that his three great moments were his birth, when he found Christ at 33, and on December 16, 2017, the day of the transplant.
The conference took place Friday at the Ira C. Clark Treatment Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital, Miami. In attendance were surgeons Matthias Loebe, Nicolás Brozzi, anesthesiologist Yiliam Rodriguez-Blanco and Neeraj Sinha, director of the lung transplant program of the Miami Transplant Institute (MTI), all of whom participated in the operation.
The institute is an affiliation between the Health System of the University of Miami and Jackson Hospital.
At the beginning of the year 2000, the 75-year-old singer noticed changes that affected his body. His voice was no longer the same and he was unable to travel to high-altitude cities such as Bogotá or Mexico City.
While his condition worsened, he consulted his primary doctor, who diagnosed him with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a chronic disease of unknown origin that causes scarring of the lungs.
According to surgeon Matthias Loebe, the disease causes more deaths among Americans than breast cancer. Then he noted that when Rodriguez arrived at MIT, the disease had advanced so much that the only way to save him was to submit him to a double lung transplant, since they tried unsuccessfully to cure him with a stem cell treatment.
His colleague Nicolás Brozzi, added that the fact that El Puma, as a singer who has trained in breathing techniques, has facilitated the recovery. At this stage it is essential to avoid infections.
Both doctors agreed that the patient is recovering thanks to his positive attitude, and that he should not have difficulties to sing or travel again.
In this regard, El Puma announced that, although he has not yet put its voice to the test, he is planning a tour for April 2019, and an album that Ricardo Montaner will produce. Also pending is the conclusion of a docuseries whose final chapter will deal with his life after the transplant.
“We’ll think about the show when I recover. As I lead a methodical life, now I will travel with my pills. No need to get ahead of myself because rushing is fatal,” said the singer.
As for the changes he has suffered at the spiritual level, El Puma confessed that this experience has removed “the pride and vanity that inflate every artist.”
Will the Puma roar again?
“Sure, stronger than ever before,” he replied.
This story was originally published April 22, 2018 at 11:04 PM with the headline "José Luis Rodríguez: El Puma will roar again, ‘stronger than ever before.’."