Girl's Heart Stopped on Holiday, Miraculous Transplant Follows
A devoted mother has recounted the harrowing moment her six-year-old daughter's heart ceased beating for several minutes during a family vacation, marking the beginning of a prolonged medical crisis. Florina Racheru, a recently qualified nurse from Ilford, east London, was enjoying a break in her native Romania in July 2024 with her daughter Maya, typically a vibrant child, when the unthinkable occurred.
Maya suddenly collapsed, exhibiting symptoms of fatigue, paleness, breathing difficulties, and abdominal pain. Florina rushed her to the emergency department, where tests revealed her heart was functioning at a mere 20% capacity. The situation deteriorated rapidly as Maya suffered a stroke, losing the ability to speak, eat, or move her limbs, followed by a cardiac arrest where her heart stopped beating for several minutes.
Diagnosis and Urgent Need for Transplant
After four weeks, Maya was transferred to Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) in London, where specialists diagnosed her with a rare neuromuscular disease primarily affecting her heart. Doctors delivered the devastating news that without a new heart, Maya would not survive. She was placed on a Berlin Heart machine to support her cardiac function and added to the transplant list in September 2024.
Florina described the agonising wait, knowing the odds were slim due to declining organ donation rates. Despite a change in legislation in England in 2020 to an automatic opt-in system for organ donation, recent statistics from NHS Blood and Transplant show a 3% drop in transplants and a 7% decrease in donors from April 2024 to March 2025. This highlights the ongoing need for individuals to register their consent, as families must still be consulted, which can sometimes prevent donations contrary to the deceased's wishes.
Recovery and Life-Saving Call
During the 10 and a half months Maya spent in hospital, she showed remarkable resilience, gradually improving to the point where she could walk and no longer required feeding or breathing tubes by 2025. The GOSH Charity provided crucial support to both Maya and Florina throughout this period.
Then, in the spring of 2025, Florina received the life-changing call that a compatible heart had been found. Overwhelmed with a mix of happiness and terror, she feared the transplant might not succeed. After a 12-hour surgery, Maya awoke with her new heart, beginning a journey of recovery.
Ongoing Challenges and Advocacy
Today, Maya is doing well, attending three-monthly check-ups at GOSH. She experiences weakness on her right side, requiring a brace for walking and assistance with her right hand and speech, but she is set to return to school at Easter. Florina expresses immense gratitude, urging people to opt into the organ donor register and calling for increased funding to support children with rare conditions like Maya's.
Aoife Regan, Director of Impact at GOSH Charity, emphasised the importance of specialist care, organ donation awareness, and further research into rare paediatric diseases. An NHS Blood and Transplant spokesperson reiterated that confirming support for donation is critical, with 90% of families honouring their loved ones' decisions last year when registered or discussed.
