Beckham

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When Beckham was born his family thought he was a healthy, beautiful, 8 lb 11oz bundle of joy. However, that ideal picture was shattered when he was diagnosed with Mitral and Tricuspid Valve Stenosis. He was quickly transferred to another hospital that could more readily assist newborns with such a grim diagnosis.

Beckham 2010
Immediately, the hospital performed a procedure to ease the pressure in his left atrium, but during the process they found further issues with Beckham’s heart. At 5 days old, Beckham was again transferred to another hospital, this time by life flight due to the fact that he needed a higher level of care. It was clear upon arrival that Beckham was in trouble and in need of some type of an interventional procedure to improve the function of his failing heart. Surgery to repair his malformed valve was deemed too risky given all of the presenting circumstances, and Beckham’s team of doctors informed us that the only option to save his life was a heart transplant. So, at the tender age of 6 days of life, Beckham was listed on the National Donor List for a heart transplant.

Ten days later, Jake’s family (Jake's story is featured here) made the selfless decision to donate their precious son’s heart. The preparation and surgery lasted about 6 hours, and the surgery and the early post-transplant period went flawlessly. “Our once “blue” baby came back to us for the first time “pink,” and perfect,” said his mom, Kim. “Beckham’s recovery was miraculous. He was their first transplant baby that was able to nurse post-transplant, and to come home completely tubeless. He was released from the hospital when he was not even 6 weeks old, just 3 weeks post-transplant.

”Beckham is now three years old and has had some setbacks both large and small. Some of them include a stroke in 2008, caused from a blood clot and bleed in his brain (cause of the clot and bleed is unknown), and three different and serious blood disorders (Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP), Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA), Glanzmann's Thrombasthenia), resulting in the diagnosis of Evan’s Syndrome (a very rare, serious, and reoccurring blood disorder). Through all of Beckham’s illnesses and hospitalizations, he has remained happy and determined, letting nothing bring him down. He is full of energy, thriving, and getting into trouble just like a normal 3 year old would. We agree that much of this is because of his determined, delightful, and active personality, but we know down deep inside, it is mainly because of Jake’s angel heart that beats and lives inside him, reminding us all of the precious gift that we’ve been given."

Click this link if you missed Jake's story of hope

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