Madeline Hunt

Puyallup, Washington

When new parents Lorie and Matthew Hunt brought their baby girl Madeline home, they quickly noticed that she wasn’t waking, eating and responding as she should be. When Madeline became increasingly lethargic and couldn’t wake on her own, the former nurse and active firefighter/paramedic sought advice from her pediatrician, who immediately admitted the baby to Good Samaritan Community Healthcare. Madeline’s condition quickly deteriorated, and she was comatose when airlifted to Children’s Hospital & Regional Medical Center later that same day. Doctors determined that Madeline had Citrullinemia, a rare metabolic disorder related to her liver. For the next 10 months, Madeline was treated with medication and a low-protein diet. She received a liver transplant in September 2003, but it failed when she developed a clot in her portal vein. Madeline received a second transplant within a week and began a long, difficult recovery. Now that she is nearly 2, Madeline loves to go outside, swing and play with other children. “We just take every day for what it’s worth,” says Lorie. “This taught us really quickly to appreciate the good days.”

Good Samaritan Community Healthcare (Puyallup, WA) to Harborview Medical Center

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