Friend donates liver, helping woman beat advanced colorectal cancer: 'Another chance at life'

Friend donates liver, helping woman beat advanced colorectal cancer: ‘Another chance at life’

A woman diagnosed with stage 4 colorectal cancer is now cancer-free after a liver transplant from a lifelong friend, highlighting a promising treatment option for select patients.

CHICAGO - Advances in science and technology are giving new hope for cancer patients. Amy Piccioli learned of her life-changing diagnosis after a visit to the emergency room in 2024. 

Piccioli, then 39, went to a Los Angeles hospital for dehydration after a stomach bug. A CT scan revealed something far more serious — a mass in her colon and multiple lesions on her liver. A biopsy confirmed stage 4 colorectal cancer.

What they're saying:

"I had gone to the emergency room for dehydration, and that led to the diagnosis of stage four colon cancer," Piccioli said. "I never had any symptoms, so it was a total shock."

Doctors say her experience reflects a growing trend: colorectal cancer is increasingly affecting adults under 50, often without warning signs.

As Piccioli began treatment, her care team identified a potential path forward that, until recently, wasn’t widely available — a liver transplant.

"What really makes her a great candidate is that not only was that cancer not outside of the liver, but she was otherwise very healthy," said Dr. Satish Nadig, a transplant surgeon and director of a comprehensive transplant at Northwestern Medicine in Chicago. 

By the numbers:

Historically, patients with colorectal cancer that has spread to the liver have had limited options. Standard treatments like chemotherapy offer about a 10% five-year survival rate.

"About 90% of patients die with standard of care therapy. That’s just unacceptable," Nadig said. "With highly selected patients, you could get upwards of 80% survival with transplantation."

Piccioli’s case met the criteria. After responding well to chemotherapy, she traveled to Chicago last year for evaluation. A multidisciplinary team determined she was a strong candidate for a living donor liver transplant.

Her donor turned out to be someone she had known nearly her entire life.

"My donor’s parents and my parents have been friends for 40 years, we grew up together," Piccioli said. "When she heard about me going through the transplant process, she ultimately was the best donor for me."

That decision would change both of their families forever.

"My first thought went to her family," said Lauren Prior. "She has three kids just like I do. So it was really easy for me to put myself in a position in her position. And honestly, I just thought about her kids and how, you know, they could not lose their mother. We needed to make sure that she got healthy."

The surgery took place last December. Just months later, Piccioli is recovering — and doctors say she currently shows no evidence of disease.

"She has no sign of cancer," Nadig said.

For Piccioli, the outcome was nothing short of life-changing.

"It’s impossible to put into words. She gave me life, another chance at life," she said.

Doctors emphasize that liver transplantation for colorectal cancer is still relatively new and only offered at a limited number of centers. But they say awareness is critical, especially for patients whose cancer is confined to the liver.

"Transplant is an option that’s worth looking into," Piccioli said. "That information could save someone’s life."

Medical experts say cases like hers represent a shift in how cancer is treated — not just focusing on survival, but on long-term quality of life.

And for Piccioli, that future now includes something that once felt uncertain: more time with the people who matter most.