“And though she be but little, she is fierce!”
Kate’s story began in May 2009 when we were told that she had elevated liver enzymes. We began seeking answers and spent the next year and a half seeing different specialists until the enzyme levels returned to normal on their own. Fast forward to January 2013, Kate came down with a virus that attacked her liver. While she was able to recover, we still didn’t have any answers to what was happening to her liver.
In the spring of 2013, Kate fell ill again and we were sent to Children’s at Scottish Rite to receive fluids. Kate’s liver levels had skyrocketed, and we were immediately transported to Children’s at Egleston and admitted to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. It was determined that her liver had suffered a significant amount of damage. Kate was in liver failure, and doctors felt that a transplant was her best option to live a full and long life.
After months of waiting, we got the call. A perfect liver had been found for our daughter.
Very early in the morning on Oct. 2, we were able to wheel Kate to just outside the operating room doors where she and Spots, her stuffed giraffe, were taken back for surgery. About four hours later, Dr. Magliocca came out and told us that everything went great and, just like that, she was cured of her disease.
And although we may never know the donor or where her liver came from, we just want to say, “Thank you is not enough, but thank you.”
While there have been a few bumps in the road to recovery and adjusting to our new normal, Kate was able to return to school and her dance lessons just months after the transplant.