Finding gratitude

Fajilagutan grew up in the Bay Area, primarily in San Francisco, with early memories of living in his grandma’s house. He was highly active, playing t-ball, basketball, flag football and karate. Everything a normal kid does. Around fifth grade, Fajilagutan was practicing karate when the mother of his friend, who was also a nurse, noticed an unusual symptom – cyanosis, which became an ongoing issue.

First diagnosis – asthma. He began experiencing extreme difficulty breathing. While seeing other kids his age run around, engaging with friends through sports, he was the “odd man out.” Weekly hospital visits in middle school became his new normal. While savoring moments of normalcy with friends through class and spending recess with teachers learning chess, he created a new definition of “fun.” Karate continued being a place of friendship and community.

Following diagnoses – unclear. Pulmonologists, cardiologists and other medical professionals in between noticed his condition was rare. By the time he entered middle school, he was using a motorized scooter and carried oxygen. Eventually, he was diagnosed with hepatopulmonary syndrome, a rare lung complication of liver disease, causing low oxygen levels and shortness of breath.

“Are you ready for a transplant?”

Fajilagutan’s pulmonologist and parents were all on board with him receiving a transplant. The only person who had not given consent yet was himself, the bearer of the organ that was failing him. Hearing about a more than 80% survival rate made him fear the fatality risk. Besides, he was comfortable with his new normal.

In 2007, at 15 years old, he went through with the transplant. He started immunosuppressant treatment, common with transplant recipients since their immune system starts at baseline again. He continued to miss out on sports, physical education class at school, and missed out on teenage hangouts at the mall.

What he gained was a blessing in disguise. He became the “... excuse to get family together,” said Fajilagutan. Sharing brighter moments with a large family and community. He later gained the fuel to give back, volunteering at Lucile Packard’s Children’s Hospital, the same place he received a transplant. He mentored teenagers who were going through similar situations, meeting them halfway in areas parents were unable to. The peer-to-peer connection was helpful in the process of reaching acceptance.

In 2013, Fajilagutan began his marketing degree at San Francisco State University and later completed the COOP Careers fellowship himself. His creativity and entrepreneurial spirit led him to making T-shirts for events, creating video content and editing pictures. He eventually worked for Pottery Barn as a supply chain analyst and went back to COOP Careers as a cohort captain. His career was on an upward trajectory.

It was not until a trip to Korea in 2024 with his cousin and friend where he relapsed. Walking felt difficult and he became reliant on oxygen again. His doctors appointments were to check on his lungs, and he received news that he needed an urgent lung transplant. Starting in February 2025, he was hospitalized for three weeks. Considering his health was rapidly declining, he was placed on the top of the waiting list.

The night of April 23, 2025, he received a lung transplant and spent the following four months in recovery, then joining his team again at work, sooner than anyone anticipated. In balancing his health and job, he gets support from his care teams for ongoing physical and respiratory therapy while now being a director for COOP Careers, a fellowship designed for college graduates to land their next role.

Fajilagutan uses milestones as a celebration of progress, or “transplant anniversaries” as he likes to call them. He enjoyed Hawaii with his friends, signed up for a 5K run after never doing a mile, and has another 5K run in next year’s plan.

Despite all he has been through, he shows up for others in and outside of work, with his key pillars being “community, staying resilient and finding the silver lining in everything, no matter how challenging things get,” said Fajilagutan.

Thank you for sharing your story, Mark!

Giselle Espinoza is a longtime San Mateo resident with a bachelor’s degree in communications, working in health care administration. She brings a Gen Z perspective and slight coffee addiction. Email giselle@smdailyjournal.com to get in touch.