Baby Zoe thriving after miracle recovery
Published: March 2, 2007
IT has been a year since baby Zoey Harris had a liver transplant and her recovery has been miraculous, her parents said yesterday.
Baby Zoey has gone from strength to strength and her parents have attributed the improvement to God‘s blessings.
“We are enjoying Zoey for the first time since she was born and she is energetic and plays a lot with her sister Caitlyn,” said her mother, Vergie.
“Zoey was miserable before the transplant, but now she is a happy child.”
Zoey, 2, who was diagnosed with biliary atresia, received a liver at the Red Cross War Memorial Children‘s Hospital in Cape Town on February 15 last year. In April, she had another operation when doctors picked up a problem with her portal vein, which transports blood to the liver, as the donor‘s portal vein had been double the size of Zoey‘s.
Her father, Hubrey, said after Zoey‘s second operation in Cape Town doctors said they could do nothing but hope and pray.
“We have a lot to smile about because Zoey has pulled through,” he said.
Hubrey said Zoey was doing well following the operation on the portal vein.
When The Herald visited Zoey‘s Bethelsdorp home yesterday, she was playing with Caitlyn.
Her parents aim to promote awareness about organ donation in their community. “Our people are not educated about the importance of organ donation, because it is taboo in our cultures,” said Vergie.
Hubrey expressed his gratitude to the community, church, family, medical aid, his colleagues and those of his wife for their support.
Vergie said it was bad that South Africa was unable to spend money on organ transplants.
“In the United Kingdom the children who need transplants receive special attention from the government.
“In the UK about 16 000 children are born with biliary atresia and they receive special care, unlike in South Africa.”
Biliary atresia is a rare disease of the liver and bile ducts that occurs in infants. Symptoms of the disease appear or develop about two to eight weeks after birth.
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