COTA for Alessandro's Heart

Our Story

Alessandro’s Journey: A Little Heart, A Big Warrior

My son Alessandro was born in January 2024 with left ventricular hypertrophy and severe aortic valve stenosis. From his very first breath, life asked him to fight.

In his first year of life, Alessandro underwent four catheterization procedures. Just after his first birthday, he faced his first open heart surgery. We thought the worst was behind us but less than 24 hours after the operation, his heart stopped. For 53 agonizing minutes, Alessandro was in cardiac arrest. I collapsed. I truly believed I had lost him forever.

But my little warrior chose life. Against all odds, he came back to us. After a month in intensive care, we finally returned home. We tried to rebuild some sense of normality, hoping the storm had passed. But it wasn’t long before Alessandro began to lose weight and breathe rapidly. We rushed back to the hospital, and tests revealed that his heart was no longer able to function on its own.

The only chance to keep him alive was to implant a ventricular assist device – the Berlin Heart.

Now, Alessandro is living with this device, waiting for a new heart. Waiting for his miracle.

Despite everything he’s been through, Alessandro remains incredibly sweet, full of love for people, especially other children.

He is our hero.

The Children’s Organ Transplant Association (COTA) helps children and young adults who need a life-saving transplant by providing fundraising assistance and family support. COTA is the nation’s only fundraising organization solely dedicated to raising life-saving dollars in honor of transplant-needy children and young adults. 100% of each contribution made to COTA in honor of our patients helps meet transplant-related expenses. COTA’s services are free to our families, and gifts to COTA are tax deductible to the fullest extent of the law.