Our little ball of sunshine, Eva, was born on March 9th, 2022, at 38 weeks healthy. She is our second addition to the family after 7 years and our family anticipated her arrival with so much love. At her 2nd month checkup, Eva’s skin tone was yellowish, and her pediatrician had a gut feeling that something wasn’t right and that it was Jaundice.
Jaundice is a medical condition with yellowing of the skin or whites of the eyes, arising from excess of the pigment bilirubin and typically caused by the obstruction of the bile duct, liver disease or excessive breakdown of red blood cells.
We talked to her pediatrician on a Friday and described her condition; we were seen the following Saturday. Eva did lab works and ultrasounds and ultimately, we were sent to Levine’s Children’s Hospital in Charlotte, NC, to see a Gastrointestinal (GI) Doctor. It was a one-hour drive for us.
By this time, we were terrified for our little girl as she was only a little over 2 months old. The doctor told us it was Biliary Atresia, a blockage in the tubes that carry bile from the liver to the gallbladder. We were told Eva had to go through a surgery called the Kasai procedure, which involves removing the blocked bile ducts and gallbladder by replacing them with a segment of Eva’s own small intestine.
The days were a blur because we dropped everything to make sure our baby was going to be okay and so we packed our bags. Eva had the Kasai surgery on June 9th, 2022, turning just 3 months old. She spent 4 days and 3 nights recovering at the hospital. We went home hoping this surgery had worked. We were in contact with Eva’s doctor in Charlotte and continued the lab work, which meant her blood was drawn once a month to see how she was holding up post-surgery.
Two and half months passed by, and we thought the worst was behind us. We noticed Eva’s stomach was bloated and we proceeded to check up with our doctor at Levine’s Children Hospital in Charlotte, NC. We were referred to Duke Children’s Hospital & Health Center in Raleigh, NC, and went for lab work, ultrasounds, CT scan etc. We waited for the results to come back in. At our next appointment, we got the news that Eva’s liver was failing, and the next step would be getting her a liver transplant. Our hearts dropped. At this point, Eva is still a happy baby. She loves to eat her baby food, watch her big brother Jordan play, and she showed strong character and fight in her small body.
After several weeks going back and forth with the amazing staff at Duke, Eva is officially listed as a candidate for a liver transplant. Eva is currently 9 months old and takes 9 medicines for her little body. We are scared for our little Eva but grateful that we are one step closer to getting Eva better. We are so thankful for the amazing hospitality that were shown to us as we traveled back and forth for Eva’s appointments by Duke and Ronald McDonald. Eva is super strong for her age and is the happiest baby even after all she’s been through. We are hopeful for Eva’s future, and we have faith everything will be alright.
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.