"Her tracheotomy tube was removed, and, putting a finger over the tracheotomy canal, her first word was 'merci, '" said Dr. Bernard Devauchelle, one of the many surgeons who carried out the surgery on November 27 in Amiens, northern France.

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When Brenner met him, he was in intensive care with a tracheotomy and a feeding tube, having developed septic shock from a gallbladder infection.

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