Ex-NFLer Greg Olsen's Son Has Successful Heart Transplant Surgery

The son of former NFL tight end Greg Olsen is out of surgery and recovering Saturday after successfully undergoing heart transplant surgery.

Olsen tweeted in March that his 8-year-old son TJ, who has suffered from health issues since birth, had reached a point where his heart was "reaching its end," Fox News reports. But just days later, the former Carolina Panthers tight end shared the news that his son was preparing for transplant surgery.

"Today is a day of mixed emotions. A day we have prayed for has arrived," he said in an Instagram post. "We were alerted last night that there was a donor match for TJ to receive his heart transplant. Walking our little boy, with tears of hope and fear in our eyes, was one of the toughest moments of our lives." 

Olsen provided an update on Twitter on Friday and said TJ will be sedated as he begins his road to recovery.

"TJ is finished with surgery and is being transferred to the ICU," he tweeted. "We won’t be able to see him for a few more hours but his doctors are very happy with the surgery. TJ will be sedated for a few days but his road to recovery has begun."

Olsen took the opportunity to remember the donor who gave his son "a chance at life." 

"To our generous angel donor, we don’t know who you are or where you lived. But know that of your selflessness, our son TJ will have a chance at life. We pray your family finds peace and maybe one day our paths shall cross," he wrote in the Instagram caption.

TJ was born in October 2012 with a rare congenital heart condition known as hypoplastic left heart syndrome, Fox News reports. He has undergone three open-heart surgeries in more than two years, and the Carolina Panthers illuminated Bank of America Stadium Friday night in TJ’s favorite color.

Olsen played nine of his 14 year NFL career with the Panthers and Around The NFL reports the team rallied around young TJ. Olsen's foundation helped create the HEARTest Yard program with the Atrium Health's Levine Children's Hospital in North Carolina, raising money and providing support for children with congenital heart diseases.

Follow Meg Turner on Twitter @MegnTurner_.