Our Patient Stories

Every day patients pass through Parkland’s doors with inspiring stories of struggle, hope and strength. Here are just a few of the lives that have been healed by Parkland.

Anything is Possible with a Loving Brother

“I won’t have to depend on a machine anymore to survive. Now, I’m going to live,” said kidney transplant recipient Saul Arvizu. The 35-year-old recently underwent a kidney transplant at Parkland Memorial Hospital, marking not only the end of the suffering he endured since his teens, but also the start of a future free from pain.

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Listening to Her Body Saved Her Life

When sudden breast pain wouldn’t go away, Nicole Polk knew something wasn’t right. At just 37 years old, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Polk first noticed a sudden breast pain that lasted nearly a week. At first, she didn’t think much of it until the pain became too difficult to ignore. “The first day was a little sore, and then it kept getting more and more painful,” she said. “When putting on my clothes was causing too much pain, that’s when I knew it was not normal.”
This was her body’s first signal that something was wrong.

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How early cancer detection at Parkland led to 100 lifesaving diagnoses

When 43-year-old Monique Jones went to Parkland Memorial Hospital for a broken ankle, cancer was the last thing on her mind.

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The Man with Two Birthdays

“I didn’t know how long the transplant was going to work,” said Gilbert Hernandez, who in 1978 received a life-saving kidney transplant at Parkland Memorial Hospital. Nearly 50 years later, every day he wakes up is a milestone, placing him among the longest-living kidney transplant recipients in the world.

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Fort Worth firefighter credits Parkland burn staff for second chance

What began as a routine house fire call on Sept. 3, 2025, quickly turned into a life-changing day for Fort Worth Firefighter Caleb Halvorson.
Caleb and fellow Station 11 firefighters were working to extinguish a house fire in Fort Worth’s Historic Southside neighborhood when the garage roof suddenly collapsed, crushing him under the debris. After one minute and 44 seconds, Caleb was pulled from the rubble and airlifted to the Parkland Memorial Hospital Burn Center for emergency treatment.

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