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Hannah looks better than ever, say parents of right-to-die heart op girl
Sophie Goodchild, Health and Social Affairs Correspondent30 Jul 2009
The father of 14-year-old heart transplant recipient Hannah Jones today spoke of his joy at the apparent success of the operation she had fought to refuse.
Andrew Jones said his daughter had seen an immediate improvement in her condition after the six-and-a-half hour operation at Great Ormond Street hospital.
The teenager had refused a transplant eight months ago, saying she wanted to die, but changed her mind when she suffered partial renal failure this month. She was airlifted from her home near Hereford to London to undergo the procedure after going to the top of the list to receive a donor organ.
Mr Jones, 44, and his wife Kirsty, 43, were at the hospital as their daughter underwent surgery.
"Kirsty and I entered the room afterwards and we were both nervous," he said.
"We walked over to Hannah's bed and saw her new heart beat for the first time. We stood there for a few minutes just looking at our beautiful girl.
"That's when I realised she looked better than ever. Before the operation, her skin was pale and she looked quite grey.
"But she now looks healthy with rosy cheeks."
Hannah now faces a long and gruelling recovery from the transplant, which was largely declared successful. Because of swelling around her chest surgeons could not close the wound, so it has a clear protective dressing.
Mrs Jones said: "She is stable but in intensive care. We are taking one day at a time, hopefully this new heart will be the first step in what will hopefully be a long road to complete recovery."
