By creator to www.derrynow.com
Six year-old Cathán Owens is rather like every other younger boy his age.
He loves Iron Man, enjoying for and supporting his native membership Watty Grahams GAC Glen, and assembly up along with his buddies.
Nonetheless, the final 12 months has been extraordinarily robust for the Maghera boy, who underwent a liver transplant in August.
Cathán, who turns seven on Boxing Day was simply 4 and a half weeks-old when he was identified with Biliary Atresia, a uncommon liver situation by which irritation develops inside the bile ducts resulting in duct injury and scarring of the liver.
Cathán’s proud mother and father Joanne and Paul have been delighted when their fourth baby, and solely son, was born in 2014 weighing a wholesome 8lb 6oz.
As the times went on nonetheless, Joanne observed that one thing wasn’t proper.
He was jaundiced and blood checks quickly confirmed that he had a uncommon liver diease.
At simply six weeks-old, little Cathán was flown to Birmingham Kids’s Hospital the place he underwent a Kasai process to take away the blocked bile ducts.
“Mainly we have been informed then that Cathán at some stage of his life may have a transplant,” recalled mum Joanne.
Lower than 5 months later, Cathán grew to become in poor health once more and was instantly flown to Birmingham the place he was assessed for transplant.
Happily, Cathán’s situation quickly improved and medical doctors suspended him on the transplant record and after a 12 months eliminated him from it utterly as he was doing so effectively.
Nicknamed ‘our wee warrior’ by his household, Cathán had plenty of ‘ups and downs’ over the subsequent few years affected by in poor health well being attributable to his situation.
He spent plenty of time in Antrim Space Hospital and was flown backwards and forwards to Birmingham, by way of air ambulance, for therapy.
Nonetheless, in February of this 12 months, issues took a flip for the more severe for the St Mary’s Glenview pupil.
“Due to his illness, his physique wasn’t absorbing nutritional vitamins and he wanted further nutritional vitamins injected into his muscular tissues,” defined Joanne.
“Sadly a bug acquired in and induced a nasty an infection which shocked the liver and it did not cope too effectively with it.”
Issues began to go downhill quickly and Cathán was transferred from Antrim Space Hospital to the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Kids.
“He spent two weeks there being handled for the an infection. He was in a lot ache after which his tummy began swelling,” Joanne continued.
“At some point, 4 of the workers mentioned they needed to talk to me they usually took me right into a room. At that stage they may see that Cathan’s wee tummy was getting greater. I knew that one thing wasn’t proper along with his liver. They took me into the room and defined that they’d executed an ultrasound on Cathán and seen that plenty of fluid had gathered. They mentioned that Birmingham needed us over. We flew once more by Air Ambulance and as soon as we arrived we have been hit with it that Cathán wanted to be assessed right away for transplant.
“The large fear was that this had occurred him as a result of he took this an infection, his liver could not cope – what would occur if he took one other an infection?”
The medical consultants in Birmingham acquired collectively and shortly made the choice that they felt the time was proper for Cathán to get an organ transplant.
“They only did not wish to depart him any longer simply in case he took one other an infection,” mentioned Joanne, additionally mum to Nicole (24), Clioná (18) and Tiarna-Rose (9).
Cathán spent one other few weeks in Birmingham the place he underwent a transplant evaluation.
As a part of the evaluation, they needed to take away eight of his tooth to get him ready and ensure his physique was wholesome sufficient for him to undergo a serious operation.
When the Owens household returned dwelling from Birmingham, Joanne mentioned it was a case of ‘a ready recreation’.
Sadly, within the weeks that adopted, issues acquired progressively worse for Cathán.
Joanne mentioned: “We observed that his liver simply wasn’t working in addition to it had been earlier than this an infection. He would have been extra drained and simply wasn’t himself. I typically questioned to myself how was his liver coping? His wee tummy was getting greater and he would have been admitted once more into hospital for additional therapy and blood transfusions.
“We knew ourselves that the choice the workforce made in Birmingham was clearly the best one however we have been simply hoping and praying {that a} appropriate liver would come up for Cathán. One other fear was the actual fact they’d stopped doing dwell donors attributable to covid. That actually frightened me as a result of when individuals would ask ‘how lengthy do it’s a must to wait on an organ’, the reply is ‘how lengthy is a bit of string?’ In order that was considered one of our most important considerations.”
Regardless of the whole lot Cathán was going by means of, he took all of it in his stride and similar to the which means of his Irish title – he grew to become a ‘little battler’.
“We knew he was sick and various things have been occurring with him however Cathán simply acquired on with it. He was only a wee warrior,” mentioned Joanne.
Weeks later, the Owens household acquired the decision they’d been ready for saying that an organ had turn out to be obtainable for Cathán.
They flew to Birmingham at 6.30am and waited all day. At 11pm that night time, medical doctors got here to see Joanne and Paul and knowledgeable them that the organ wasn’t appropriate for his or her son.
Feeling deflated, the household flew again dwelling once more however tried to stay optimistic.
One morning, some weeks after, Joanne went into Cathán’s room to get him up when she observed he was struggling to breath.
“He wasn’t in a position to discuss to me or reply, apart from a nod of the top. I knew this wasn’t Cathán so I rang an ambulance right away. His coronary heart price had gone up and we have been despatched to Resus in Antrim Hospital. Certainly one of his bloods indicated acute failure,” mentioned Joanne.
After being admitted to the ward, Cathán fortunately began to point out indicators of enchancment.
“They informed me he had an an infection and it (the liver) simply was’t working as effectively accurately. Every thing was happening hill and I knew that wasn’t proper. His well being was deterioriating and his liver wasn’t in a position to cope.”
Because the weeks went on and spring turned to summer time, the Owens’ made plans to take a brief trip.
“We tried to benefit from the summer time as a household whereas we may however have been additionally ready on the similar time for that decision,” mentioned Joanne.
“So we went away within the caravan for 5 days however had our suitcases with us simply in case we acquired the decision. We managed to get 5 days away and Cathán loved each minute of it.”
Simply two weeks after returning dwelling from their break, Joanne acquired the decision they’d been dreaming of.
“We acquired the decision on the Sunday morning – 22nd August – we arrived in Birmingham at 12midday that day and we had an extended wait.
“It was the sceond time I had acquired the decision so I sort of knew a bit extra about what to anticipate though it wasn’t any simpler taking your baby over. We acquired over, needed to wait and wait, not figuring out if it was going to go forward.”
Conincidentally, as Paul was getting some recent air outdoors the hospital later that night time, he observed an ambulance pull up outdoors with a particular supply.
He managed to seize a brief video of the organ being transported into the hospital.
“Paul got here in and mentioned to me ‘an organ has been delivered to the hospital, I believe it is Cathán’s’. At that time we have been questioning is he going to get it and pondering to ourselves that this could possibly be the one,” mentioned Joanne.
“A short while later they got here up and mentioned ‘proper, we’re prepared for him’. It was nonetheless behind my head that they could come to us and say the organ wasn’t appropriate but it surely was additionally actual, it was occurring and Cathán was having a transplant.
“His daddy carried him all the way down to the theatre and I walked beside them. It was a tough factor to do, it was very emotional leaving him there and having to attend, not figuring out what was occurring and the way they have been getting on.”
Seven and a half hours after going into theatre, Cathán was again within the hospital’s intensive care unit.
Though the operation got here on the proper time for Cathán, medical doctors mentioned the injury induced to his liver was worse than they’d anticipated.
“The liver illness had progressed through the years and the liver itself was fairly broken they usually mentioned to us aftewards that his liver was virtually lifeless. Roughly solely 5 % of it was nonetheless working they usually mentioned we have been very, very fortunate to have him. It had lesions and was beginning to stick with the organs,” mentioned Joanne.
All of the household find out about Cathán’s organ donor is that she was a 33 year-old lady nonetheless Joanne says they intend to jot down to her household.
Talking in regards to the significance of turning into an organ donor, Joanne is urging others to contemplate signing as much as the register.
“On the time when Cathán was born, I wasn’t on the organ donor register,” mentioned Joanne.
“When Cathán got here alongside and we have been studying in regards to the illness and that, we realised that we would have liked to enroll and we did. We would not have Cathán right here right this moment with out that donor. They have been telling us one other two weeks and we may have been in bother.
“Some individuals like ourselves do not take into consideration organ donation till one thing like that hits dwelling and it’s actual life for us and different individuals on the market when you’ve got a toddler or different famiy member who’s in poor health.
“It is laborious as a result of somebody has needed to lose a member of the family for us to achieve that reward of life for our son. We’re eternally grateful for that.
“I’ve seen different youngsters ready for organs previously and sadly they do not get it in time and that was one of many huge issues for me with Cathán when he was youthful and being within the hospital surrounded by different youngsters and seeing some good tales and a few not so good tales. It was all the time behind my head ‘is Cathán going to be wholesome sufficient for the transplant when it comes?’, ‘will it come on the proper time for him?’ Some individuals would have mentioned to me ‘would they not simply take that wain and provides him a transplant?’ Sadly it simply does not work like that. It is scary to suppose what might need occurred if Cathán did not get the transplant on the 23rd of August.”
Since his transplant, Cathán is recovering effectively and though he hasn’t but returned to highschool, Joanne says she has observed a ‘huge change’ in him.
“About two weeks after the transplant, the color of his pores and skin modified, his cheeks began to fill out as he was beginning to acquire weight. His tummy was very massive earlier than he went in and now the distinction in that’s unbelievable. He’s more healthy wanting, he is only a completely different wee boy,” mentioned Joanne, who has nothing however reward for the hospital groups in Birmingham and Antrim.
“The workers there are superb and we’re so grateful to them,” mentioned Joanne, including that her son acquired his transplant ‘simply in time’.
“Main as much as transplant, we all the time tried to take pleasure in every day and fear when it’s a must to fear. Life’s too brief. The truth that Cathán is such somewhat warrior, it makes life simpler for us at occasions. Nothing is ever an issue with him. Do not get me unsuitable, he is had it robust and he deserves a trophy for that. He is missed out on a lot and so many particular events so I am hoping we keep out (of hospital) for Christmas this 12 months so he can take pleasure in his birthday,” she added.
— to www.derrynow.com
