USA: A nine-year-old girl named Kaja DeGrud became the center of a dramatic medical story when she received a rare partial heart transplant after a summer of escalating surgeries and complications. Kaja, who had already endured three prior heart operations beginning at six days old, traveled to North Carolina for the procedure. The journey itself required extraordinary measures: a private jet was hired to protect her fragile condition, a trip made possible when a King 5 viewer, John Chontalfalski, donated $14,000 to cover the flight.
What followed was a tense, months-long wait. What was planned as a brief stay stretched to two and a half months as potential donors repeatedly backed out and Kaja fell into heart failure and repeated illness. The medical team ultimately performed a rare domino transplant: another child in the same hospital received a full heart, and that operation enabled a partial heart to be shared with Kaja. That domino surgery produced two lifesaving outcomes in a single day and marked Kaja as one of roughly 40 children worldwide to receive this kind of partial heart transplant.
Back home now, Kaja faces a lengthy recovery and intensive follow-up. Her family has learned complex medication regimens and scar care while navigating the uncertainty that accompanies such an unusual procedure. Because the transplantation is so rare, clinicians are treating her case as part of ongoing study, and Kaja’s immediate future remains cautiously optimistic as doctors monitor her progress and manage post-transplant risks.
The story highlights a chain of compassion from donor families, hospital teams, and community supporters that made the transplant possible. Parents, surgeons, and donors all played essential roles in the rescue, illustrating how coordinated medical skill and generosity can produce lifesaving outcomes. Kaja’s family expresses profound gratitude as they hope this partial transplant finally allows her to begin living as a healthy child.
