Celebrating 30 years of life: heart transplant survivor urges organ donation this Christmas

Patient who had life-saving heart transplant 30 years ago at Harefield Hospital, urges people to register their decision to become organ donors this Christmas so that more lives can be saved.

In 1994, the same year that the Organ Donation Register was launched in the UK, Mica Weekes underwent life-saving heart transplant surgery, following a cardiomyopathy diagnosis, when she was only 11 months old. Cardiomyopathy is a disease that affects the heart’s ability to pump blood around the body. Mica’s surgery was performed by world renowned cardiothoracic surgeon, Professor Sir Magdi Yacoub.

Mica turned 31 this year, but it was her 30^th ‘heart birthday’ that she celebrated. “I used to call it my ‘heart birthday’ when I was little. It means more to me than my actual birthday,” Mica says. “My parents were told my life expectancy would be around five years after my transplant. It was all still so unknown in 1994. I’ve been so lucky, as medical practices and research have evolved so much over the years, and here I am and my little heart is ok.”

Mica’s dad, Stuart Weekes, was just 21 when Mica was born. He remembers the impact of the news that she would need a heart transplant to survive: “It was a terrible time. We nearly didn’t go ahead with it. Heart transplantation was so new back then.

He adds: “But it was almost like it was meant to be. I remember reading about Vinnie Jones’ [the footballer turned actor] wife who’d had a heart transplant at Harefield, and meeting a young boy at the hospital who’d also had a heart transplant, and he was healthy and thriving. Mica’s consultant, Dr Rosemary Radley-Smith (pictured below next to a young Mica), was also someone clearly at the top of her game, and we were lucky too to have Magdi (pictured below on the right) as our surgeon.”

Stuart explains that Mica’s condition has never held her back: “It was unnerving after the surgery. We had to learn to be careful of Mica’s weakened immune system. But on the whole, she’s lived a normal life. She has no limitations.”

Mica has been a patient at Harefield Hospital all her life, and has participated in events like the Transplant Games as a child where she won medals for long jump and sprinting. She is now a specialist in internal recruitment for an animal charity.

Mica recalls: “I remember I was a nightmare as a child, not wanting to have my bloods done! But now, as an adult, I can see just how much staff do to care for patients – everyone from the receptionist to my clinicians, and I appreciate them so much.”

Mica is still a patient at Harefield. She has angiograms once a year to check the health of her blood vessels. She also has lipoprotein apheresis every two weeks, a treatment which helps lower the Lipoprotein A levels in her blood that could lead to heart problems.

Alison Pottle, nurse consultant in cardiology at Harefield, leads the apheresis unit which treats Mica. She comments: “It’s wonderful to see Mica thrive. The whole team here has had the privilege of getting to know her well, and her positive spirit is not only infectious but inspirational.”

Staff at Harefield threw Mica a birthday celebration earlier this year (pictured in first image in the article). They were joined by Mica’s dad, and Wendy Harriman, a retired paediatric nurse who cared for Mica when she was a baby on the transplant ward.

Mica hopes that by sharing her story, she will encourage  people who are yet to decide about organ donation to register, and give hope to anyone on the waiting list: “I know I am fortunate, but if seeing my story gives hope to someone on the organ donation waiting list and is worried about transplantation, or it inspires someone to register to be an organ donor, I am glad to share it.”

Register your decision to be an organ donor now on the NHS Organ Donor Register, visit: www.organdonation.nhs.uk