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Washington Post – A former soldier who became a quadruple amputee after an explosion in Iraq three years ago has undergone a rare double arm transplant at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, the hospital said Monday. Brendan Marrocco, 26, of Staten Island, who underwent the marathon surgery last month, was the first service member from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to survive the loss of four limbs, officials have said. He lost both legs above the knee, his left arm below the elbow and his right arm above the elbow when a military vehicle he was driving was struck by a powerful makeshift bomb on Easter in 2009. A determined, soft-spoken young man who has endured numerous surgeries, return trips to the hospital and setbacks, he had been waiting for the transplants for years. He got his wish Dec. 18 in a complex, multi-hour operation in which bundles of his muscle, bone, blood vessels, skin and nerves were joined — at times under a microscope — with those of a deceased donor. “He’s doing well,” Marrocco’s father, Alex, said Monday. “Doing well. It’s been a little over a month now.” Marrocco is the first service member to receive a double arm transplant, and the hospital said he is one of only seven people in the United States who have undergone successful double arm transplants.

Just wanted to take a break from the normal smut and silliness that we do day in and day out to recognize what my man Brendan Marrocco went through the past few years. Probably the toughest motherfucker in the whole world. Literally. He’s the only dude from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to survive injuries of this magnitude. And while maybe things may never be like they once were, getting a double arm transplant has gotta be pretty fuckin awesome for him. I know there are so many wounded warriors out there who need all sorts of medical attention, but none as deserving as Brendan Marrocco.

Ordinarily I make fun of people who talk about being proud to be a New Yorker and all sorts of NYC stereotypes, but I can honestly say I take some pride in the fact that a guy like Brendan comes from my home town. Viva La Marrocco and Viva La Science.

PS – Yes, it really chaps my balls that he’s all over the internet in a Chive shirt tweeting at them and shit. Really bro! The Chive?? Stoolies, show this guy some love so he knows what we’re all about and Brendan give me your address so I can send you a King Henrik Barstool t shirt. I know you’re a Rangers fan.