CLEVELAND — It’s the news that 10-year-old Ava Cooper had been dreaming about for more than 200 days at Cleveland Clinic Children’s: She was getting a new heart.
The transplant happened a few weeks ago, marking a major milestone in Ava’s extraordinary medical journey. While her recovery has included some ups and downs, her mother Jamie reports that Ava’s new heart is doing “fabulous.”
The moment the Cooper family learned a donor heart was available was filled with emotion. After more than 200 days of waiting, attached to a Berlin heart pump that kept Ava alive, the news they had been praying for finally arrived.
“Daddy, I got a heart!” Ava told Sean Cooper on a FaceTime call. “Are you serious?” Sean said. “Oh my goodness!”
For Ava, who was born with multiple heart defects and had already undergone four open-heart surgeries before most children start school, this transplant represents a new chance at life.
In the three weeks since her transplant, Ava has already begun experiencing moments of normalcy that were impossible during her long hospital stay. She’s been able to walk the hospital hallways and even venture outside to enjoy the spring weather – simple pleasures that were out of reach just a few weeks ago.
This is the same determined young girl who, during her wait for a new heart, inspired hospital staff to create a special father-daughter dance in her hospital room when she couldn’t attend the one at her school.
The Cooper family has expressed “endless gratitude” to two groups who made this miracle possible: the donor family who, in the midst of their own unimaginable loss, gave Ava the gift of life; and the healthcare heroes at Cleveland Clinic Children’s who have become like family during their extended stay.
That perseverance has now been rewarded with the gift of a new heart and the promise of brighter days ahead.
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