5-Year-Old, girl, from Montgomery County Will Soon be heading to California to receive a lifesaving Heart Surgery
The time has come for a Montgomery, Texas mom Brooke Whisenhunt, to leave Texas and travel to California in hopes to save her 5-year-old little girl’s life. After months of intense waiting, her daughter will now get the chance to be operated on by Dr. Hanley, also known as, “The doctor who fixes hearts that can’t be fixed” Family & Friends are now working hard to make sure this mom & her little girl get prayers from all over the world. A “Day of Prayers for Preslee” as she receives her life saving operation November 30, 2018.
5-year-old Preslee Manuel was born with a rare congenital heart defect at birth called Tetralogy of Fallot with (MAPCAS) along with DiGeorge Syndrome. Within the second year of her life, Preslee also developed Pulmonary Hypertension. Prior to her birth mother, Brooke Whisenhunt, was told her daughter would be born with some form of Congenital Heart Defect. Due to the severity of Preslee’s condition they were unsure whether she would even survive birth or the days that followed.
In the last five years Preslee has had numerous hospitalizations, surgeries, and receives continuous medication through a port, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Mother Brooke says, “I was told she wouldn’t make it past 4 years old; we will be celebrating her 6th birthday November 4th and I believe prayers are the reason she is here today.”
Back in May 2018, during a routine checkup at Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston, Texas, Preslee’s family received the heart-breaking news that Preslee’s heart was in trouble. She now has a huge blood clot sitting on her heart and her heart is just not able to keep up with what she needs. It was at this time that they would make every effort to get her to Dr. Hanley, at Stanford Children’s Hospital, in California who is the only surgeon in the World who could help Preslee’s Heart. For the last three months, her family has anxiously waited to hear whether she was accepted as a candidate for the surgery. The news finally came in August that Dr. Hanley was willing to perform surgery on Preslee and it was the news they have been hoping and praying for!
Brooke and Preslee will need to travel to California for her surgery and be prepared to stay for an unknown length of time. Due to Preslee’s condition they have decided to fly her to California rather than drive her as it would be 3 days of driving time.
Family and Friends are now busy making sure that this mother doesn’t have to worry about anything. Family Member, Shelby Alley, says “I don’t want Brooke to worry about how she will get her there, how she will continue to pay bills, I just want her to make memories with her daughter. She already knows the risks of the surgery and that Preslee may not survive to come back home to Texas. This is something no parent should ever have to worry about.”
