The Heald family’s newest members will spend their first Christmas at home in Central Queensland, thanks to lifesaving surgery at the Queensland Children’s Hospital (QCH).
Identical twins Lilly and Lucy Heald were born prematurely at 31 weeks at the Mater Mothers’ Hospital, before Lilly was transferred to the QCH to undergo surgery at just 22 hours old.
Lilly – born weighing 867 grams - was diagnosed with the rare birth defect jejunal atresia, which causes a blockage in the small intestine. Without the surgery, Lilly wouldn’t have been able to feed.
Mum Melissa said the procedure under senior paediatric surgeon Dr Romi Das Gupta was difficult to comprehend, so soon after the girl’s emergency caesarean.
“It was very hard, with Lilly being so young, not even a day old,” she said. “It was quite scary for us.”
“Lilly’s first surgery relieved the obstruction, but the downstream end of her intestine had never had anything go through it, so there was a discrepancy in size,” Dr Das Gupta said.
“We made her a stoma to collect her body’s waste on the outside of her body, in a bag. Over several weeks, it gave us the opportunity to ‘grow’ her downstream intestine by refeeding the contents of bag into it.”
The Heald family, including 12-year-old Billie and 8-year-old Cooper, had relocated from Tannum Sands near Gladstone in Central Queensland prior to twins’ birth, to be closely monitored.
They continued to stay close by in South Brisbane, while the twins received care in the critical care unit, before Lilly’s second surgery at two-months-old with Dr Das Gupta.
“For families it’s an exercise in patience, while we slowly refeed the lower end of the intestine, until the appropriate time, when we can safely join the two ends of her bowel together,” Dr Das Gupta said.
“The second surgery was to close the stoma by rejoining the two ends of the bowel. Lilly responded very well, she was stable throughout the whole process and her recovery was relatively quick.”
Melissa Heald said the entire family was forever grateful to the entire QCH surgical team.
“Their care for Lilly was exceptional and we are deeply thankful for their expertise and dedication to ensuring that Lilly can live a normal, healthy life,” Melissa said.
“We were never sure if we were going to be home for Christmas or not, we were always told to take it day by day,” Melissa said.
Seventy-five days after the twins were born on September 6, Lilly and Lucy were discharged, heading home for the first time.
“The girls’ big sister, Billie, had just one wish for Christmas - that we would all be home together,” Melissa said. “That wish has come true.”
