Millie Malloy was just two weeks old when she was admitted to the Royal Hospital for Children, Glasgow on the 30th of November 2023 with a cardiac condition called coarctation of the aorta.
From there, Millie faced multiple health challenges to overcome, resulting in a six month stay.
Last week, she joined her brother Harris (2) and parents Emma and Ross Malloy at their family home in Carluke – and they’re bursting with excitement.
Emma (32) and Ross (29) are sharing their story to celebrate Millie finally getting home and to thank the multiple medical team members that enabled her to get there, especially NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Cardiac Surgeon, Professor Danton, ENT Surgeon Mr Mathew Ellis, and Cardiac Consultant, Dr Lindsey Hunter.
Emma recalled: “The plan was to deliver naturally, and the heart condition wasn’t at the forefront of our minds. We didn’t think there would be any complications which would require surgery. On the 10th of November 2023, Millie was born. She looked perfect and we didn’t have any issues at birth.
“We were home for two weeks, but Millie had lost quite a bit of weight. It was at that point we attended the RHC for an Echo & ECG with Dr Hunter and it was identified she had coarctation of the aorta as well as a right aortic arch.
“Dr Hunter called us and asked us to come in the next morning and to bring a hospital bag for myself and Millie for her CT scan. That’s when our stay began and lasted until this week,” she said.
The CT scan provided a further diagnosis of Millie’s condition. Her aorta was described as hypoplastic, which meant that it hadn’t fully developed. She had a right arch with severe coarctation, and she also had a vascular ring. Due to Millie’s aorta condition being right sided, it came down the back of her heart and swept across to the left, which is called a circumflex.
Emma continued: “Professor Danton was the surgeon who would be carrying out Millie’s repair and we were told that the combination of Millie’s abnormalities with her aorta were very rare. He made a 3D model of her heart and consulted experts at other hospitals to enable him to plan before he tackled the surgery.
“It was an unsettling time for all of us. We spent about three weeks on the cardiac ward, 1E before Millie had her surgery and, during that time, she was also diagnosed with a rare chromosome disorder called chromosome 16p13.11 microduplication syndrome,” she said.
Millie had her heart surgery on the 19th of December 2023, and spent 19 hours in theatre.
“During surgery there were a few complications. We were advised that the team needed to stop her heart and cannulate her lower body because of how extensive it was.
“Once the surgery was finished, she then had a bleed in the heart so had to be opened back up, causing her chest being open for four days,” Emma said.
On Christmas Day, the plan was to remove Millie’s breathing tube, but it didn’t work. Something was stopping Millie breathing on her own.
On the 28th of December she went for a micro laryngoscopy and bronchoscopy (MLB), to allow the doctors to look at her airways, but there was nothing obvious showing up. Following this, her breathing tube was removed, but she was struggling. Millie then had a nasal scope done and she was diagnosed with one paralysed vocal cord and Laryngomalacia.
The doctors made three attempts at putting a stitch in her vocal cord to help her to breath on her own, a rare procedure for her size. While each attempt worked, complications arose during recovery. However, Professor Danton and Mr Ellis persevered, and the third procedure was a success. The alternative was a tracheostomy which would have been a different life for Millie.
“There were many terrifying moments between the three stitch procedures, and, at times, it felt like we were going backwards. The doctors kept us informed throughout the process and we were happy about how they worked together to do the best for Millie.
“Following the third stitch being put on her vocal cord, she has gone from strength to strength. It’s taken a lot of conversations between teams and juggling things around for her to get where she is. One thing that was crucial was Ward 1E accepting her back on the airflow, enabling her to get this treatment and not a tracheostomy,” she said.
Millie and her family are now loving every minute at home. She will continue to attend the RHC as an outpatient and from an ENT perspective, she may need future surgeries.
Emma explained how emotional the journey home has been: “The hospital has been our home for the last six months. I was really emotional saying goodbye to everyone.
“We are so grateful to all the staff that looked after all of us since we have been here. There are far too many to mention individually, and we feel like we owe her main consultants so much. They have given her the best life she could have. If it wasn’t for her cardiac surgery Millie wouldn’t be here with us today. There are not enough words to describe how thankful we are,” she said.
Dr Hunter explained that the team are delighted to see how Millie has progressed:
“It has been a pleasure to care for Millie and her family from the start of this challenging journey. Both Millie and her family have shown great strength and patience throughout. I have the honour of continuing to care for her in the cardiac outpatient setting, watching her grow and develop. There was a lot of emotion the day she was discharged, but both the team and I are delighted she is now at home beginning an exciting new stage of her life, with her family around her.”
