The family of a Utah teen whose lungs collapsed claims that a hospital denied him a life-saving transplant because weed was found in his system. Riley Hancey, 19, was hospitalized in late November with a severe bout of pneumonia which caused both of his lungs to collapse. University of Utah Hospital physicians told Hancey that he would need to undergo a double-lung transplant to survive, news station KSL-TV reported. But Hancey was rejected from the hospital’s transplant list when his drug test came back positive for pot intoxicant THC, according to his family. “[The doctor] was willing to let him die over testing positive for marijuana. This is what shocked me,” his father, Mark Hancey, told Buzzfeed News. He said his son was very active prior to his illness and rarely smoked pot. “Riley did smoke marijuana on Thanksgiving night with his friends,” Mark Hancey told KSL-TV. “It’s not like he’s a smoker for 30 years and (had) deteriorating lungs because of that.” The hospital said patients can be denied transplants for a variety of reasons related to substance abuse. “We do not transplant organs in patients with active alcohol, tobacco or illicit drug use or dependencies until these issues are addressed, as these substances are contraindicated for a transplant,” the hospital said in a statement provided to KSL-TV. The 19-year-old’s family said he was forced to travel more than 2,000 miles to Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, where he underwent a double-lung transplant two weeks ago. Friends created a YouCaring page to raise money to cover his medical expenses. “He looked so healthy,” Mark Hancey said. “It made all the difference, and he still looks healthy. … He’s still fighting, and he’s doing well.” Source
