Hannah Genevieve Warren was born on August
22, 2010 at Dongguk University Ilsan Hospital in Goyang-si, Gyeonggi Province
(where her parents lived). When she was born she was blue. Doctors spent about
five minutes resuscitating her. Hannah developed a bronchoesophageal fistula
which enabled doctors to revive her after birth. Doctors inserted a tube
through her esophagus and into her lungs and discovered she did not have a
trachea. She was transferred to Seoul National Hospital. Hannah's esophagus often
secretes mucous and the secretions sometimes flow towards her lungs, so her
tube has to be suctioned every fifteen minutes, which is why she never left the
hospital. Hannah often drains her own saliva onto the tube and into her lungs,
basically drowning in her own saliva, and if the saliva wasn't suctioned, she
would die. Hannah contracted pneumonia numerous times and was pulled out of
many life threatening situations.
Dr. Mark Holterman (Children's Hospital of
Illinois) first met Hannah on a business trip. He by chance went back to Seoul
a 5 months later for a stem cell conference and met Hannah again. The second
time he met the family in tears and they told him "we don't know what to
do, our daughter is a prisoner in the hospital" and asked him to contact
Dr. Paolo Macchiarini, which he promised to do when he gets back to Illinois.
Dr. Macchiarini responded the very next day volunteering to help. Dr. Holterman
arranged to have the surgery in Children's Hospital of Illinois. In early March
2013 they visited Seoul to do some final testing and found that Hannah had
issues with her esophagus and four major arteries, which would further
complicate the surgery, but they determined the transplant could proceed. They took stem cells from Hannah's hip bone. Hannah
had her surgery on April 9th, not only receiving a new trachea, but an
operation on her esophagus as well, and then was breathing through a
tracheostomy tube. Hannah is being cared for by a team including pulmonologists,
hematologists, intensivists, nurses, respiratory therapists, physical,
occupational and speech therapists, and supportive services. On April 16 she was
breathing on her own. On June 11, Hannah had a second operation for a
leak in her esophagus, and died on Saturday, July 6, 2013 of lung complications.
Her native tissue was too fragile for the operation to work. "The trachea
was never a problem," Dr. Macchiarini said. "It was her native tissue
that was very fragile."
Hannah at Seoul National University Hospital
– https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVXsRMRmsO4
Paolo talks to Hannah (skip to 2:35 to see
Paolo talking to Hannah) – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lR6PwKNW11w
Paolo and Mark Holterman consulting the
parents about the surgery – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1MuCvfrKrSI
Hannah Warren windpipe transplant bioreactor
preparation – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmUFpFcRkXQ
2013 Children's Hospital of Illinois Telethon
Miracle Child- Hannah Warren – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycSHk26LsuA
Girl, 2, makes medical history with stem cell
surgery – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S__CJvaF9JE
Girl has first ever stem cell trachea transplant – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Ts1P8bOe7M
Girl has first ever stem cell trachea transplant – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Ts1P8bOe7M
Tributes to Hannah – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGODmn3jLxw
When will Hannah Receive Her New Trachea? When will Hannah Receive Her New Trachea?
When will Hannah Receive Her New Trachea? When will Hannah Receive Her New Trachea?
Young Girl Receives Lifesaving Windpipe
Transplant Made From Her Stem Cells – http://healthland.time.com/2013/04/30/young-girl-undergoes-successful-windpipe-transplant-from-her-stem-cells/
Hannah Warren, first child to receive
windpipe made from stem cells, dies – http://natmonitor.com/2013/07/10/hannah-warren-first-child-to-receive-windpipe-made-from-stem-cells-dies/
Waiting on life’s breath – http://nwww.koreaherald.com/common_prog/newsprint.php?ud=20120720001117&dt=2
Little Hannah Warren waiting on
groundbreaking windpipe transplant surgery –http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20110629000804&mod=skb
Stem cell windpipe gives Korean toddler new
life – http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20130501000575&mod=skb
Help Hannah Breathe (fundraiser for surgery) – https://www.giveforward.com/fundraiser/qbr/helphannahbreathe
Hannah’s Story Children’s hospital of
Illinois – http://www.childrenshospitalofillinois.org/trachea-surgery/
Trachea Transplant at Children's Hospital of
Illinois Gives Korean Toddler New Windpipe –
http://www.childrenshospitalofillinois.org/trachea-surgery/press.html
Two-Year Old Girl Receives Man-made Trachea
Implant in First-of-its-Kind Surgery – http://www.childrenshospitalofillinois.org/trachea-surgery/pdfs/BioSpherix-Release.pdf
Hannah Warren Obituary – http://www.legacy.com/ns/hannah-warren-obituary/165754292
Young Girl Given Bioengineered Windpipe Dies – http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/08/science/young-girl-given-bioengineered-windpipe-dies.html