Woman Received a Heart from Her Friend’s Daughter

A heart transplant is the only way to treat congestive heart failure.

(Mirror Daily, United States) – It seems that miracles are real as a woman received a heart from her friend’s daughter after being on the transplant list for 18 months.

Tanisha Basham, a 41 years old woman was affected by congestive heart failure and she was in need of a heart transplant surgery in order to stay alive. Her critical health condition was well known by her best friend, Domonique Smith, a 49 years old woman.

But he two Illinois women had no idea what fate had in store for them, or for Vicki Olds, the 18 years old daughter of Domonique Smith. It seems that in June 2015 an unexpected accident took the life of Vicki, leaving the in the position to make a life-changing decision.

Domonique Smith, also known as Nikki by friends and family, immediately chose to let a part of Vicki live on in the chest of Tanisha Basham, her best friend.

Basham initially refused the heart, but it was later convinced by Smith that it is the best thing she could do to keep her daughter’s memory alive along with her best friend, which she claims she loves like a sister.

The operation was successful and now Smith has the opportunity to listen to her daughter’s heart beat once again. The best part is that she managed to save a life in the process.

The transplant took place last June, but the two women recently appeared at a press conference where they spoke about Vicki and how her heart lives on as a testimony of her mother’s love for her dear friend. The two are still the best of friends, Basham actually stating that the transplant brought them even closer together.

Congestive heart failure is an illness that affects an average of 6 million Americans. Every year nearly 670,000 individuals are diagnosed with this condition.

Contrary to popular belief, heart failure doesn’t necessarily mean that the heart stops from working entirely. It means that the patient experiences a decrease in normal heart functions, like the power with which the heart pumps the blood is weaker. Because the blood is pumped at a weaker pace, the pressure inside the organ increases. This leads to an insufficient distribution of nutrients and oxygen in the entire body.

In order to recalibrate itself, the walls of the heart could stretch so it could hold more blood. Another usual effect of the disorder is thickened heart muscles.

There is no treatment for the advanced stages of heart failure and transplant is the only option for a lot of patients. And since transplant organs are scarce, it seemed like a miracle when a woman received a heart from her friend’s daughter and is now free of the disorder.

Image source: www.wikimedia.org

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John Birks

John holds a diploma in journalism from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University. He covers the technology, social media, green business, eco-travel, politics, arts culture.