Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, 90, underwent surgery for scar tissue removal on her intestine Sunday at Emory University Hospital (EUH), where she will recover for several days, according to a Feb. 19 statement on behalf of The Carter Center.
Former U.S. President and Emory University Distinguished Professor Jimmy Carter, 93, said his wife had been experiencing health problems with her bowels and intestines for 25 years, the result of an earlier surgery to remove a tumor, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (AJC). After the operation, scar tissue developed on a significant portion of her small intestine.
Carter visited his hometown of Plains, Ga., Feb. 19 as scheduled, and addressed a crowd that had gathered for Presidents’ Day at the Jimmy Carter National Historic Site, the AJC reported. Carter said he prayed for three hours and was “deathly afraid” as his wife underwent the surgery, during which doctors hadn’t been able to give him “a lot of hope.”
But around 5 a.m. that morning, doctors told Carter that his wife would be all right, the AJC reported. Both Carter and his wife, who founded The Carter Center together, have spoken at Emory University and are invested in human rights initiatives and mental health advocacy.
emily.sullivan@emory.edu | Emily Sullivan (18C) is from Blue Bell, Pa., majoring in international studies and minoring in ethics. She served most recently as news editor. Last summer, she interned with Atlanta Magazine. Emily dances whenever she can and is interested in the relationship between journalism and human rights issues.
