6-Year-Old Girl from the Philippines Celebrates Belated Birthday and Early Thanksgiving after Getting Gift of Life at St. Francis Hospital

Roslyn, New York – Suzzane Castillo didn’t get a chance to celebrate her birthday like most children her age. Instead, the 6-year-old was on her way to the U.S. to get a life-saving procedure to mend her broken heart. But now, less than a week before Thanksgiving, Suzzane will celebrate the party she missed with the doctor who gave her a gift she will never forget – her health.

The Filipino child was born on November 2, 2005, with a congenital heart defect called patent ductus arteriosis or PDA. The debilitating condition is caused by a hole between the aorta and pulmonary artery that allows oxygen-rich blood to mix with oxygen-poor blood. If left untreated, it can cause the heart muscles to weaken and eventually result in heart failure.

Thanks to the Gift of Life, Inc., a Great Neck-based humanitarian organization that helps children from around the world receive life-saving medical procedures, Suzzane was flown from her hometown of Tres Cavite, about 100 miles from Manila, to Long Island.

When she arrived, St. Francis Hospital and Sean Levchuck, M.D., Chairman of Pediatric Cardiology, donated their services to heal Suzzane. Using a minimally-invasive catheter-based procedure, the doctor was able to plug up the hole in Suzzane’s heart

“As a father myself, it gives me great pleasure to see Suzzane celebrate her birthday like other children her age,” says Dr. Levchuck, who has saved dozens of children through the Hospital’s longstanding partnership with Gift of Life. “For me, this is what Thanksgiving is all about.”

Suzzane’s mother, Mary Ann Castillo, who came to the U.S. with her daughter, says she can appreciate the spirit of the holiday even though it’s not celebrated as extensively in her country as it is here. Her husband, Ronald, who is a jeepney (commuter van) driver, can’t wait to see his daughter finally be able to run and play without feeling tired. The Castillos consider the procedure a true blessing or “bukod-tenging pagpapala” and say they have a lot to be thankful for this year.

Contact:
Paul Barry, 516-705-6657, paul.barry@chsli.org
Rosemary Gomez, 516-705-6656, rosemary.gomez@chsli.org