Denver blazed a trail for other children before she was even born.
“She’s a fighter,” says her mother, Kenyatta. “And she’s been one from the beginning.”
A rare, life-threatening diagnosis
Kenyatta and her husband, Derek, received devastating news at their 30-week ultrasound in their home state of Louisiana.
Their baby, Denver, had an enlarged heart and a rare blood vessel abnormality (called a VOGM) in her brain. More than half of the babies with the condition develop severe problems right after birth. Many die.
Denver’s parents learned that the world’s leading expert on VOGM, Dr. Darren Orbach, was at Boston Children’s Hospital. They quickly reached out to Dr. Orbach. “Now, we had hope,” Kenyatta. There was more good news: Denver met the criteria for a groundbreaking procedure that Dr. Orbach and his colleagues had developed.
Hope for Denver
Family and friends watched their three older children in Louisiana while Derek and Kenyatta went to meet the care team in Boston. Tests showed the VOGM was getting larger, but Denver’s brain tissue wasn’t damaged yet. Her doctors and parents knew it was time to act.
“We’re grounded in our faith and were so confident in Dr. Orbach and the team,” says Kenyatta. “Denver was already fighting for her life, and now it was time for us all to help save it.”
We were so confident in Dr. Orbach and the team. Denver was already fighting for her life, and now it was time for us all to help save it.
Kenyatta, Denver's mom
A healthy future ahead
The revolutionary in utero procedure took only 20 minutes and Kenyatta watched it all unfold on an ultrasound screen. Denver’s condition improved right away and she was born two days later. She was the first child in North America to successfully undergo the procedure while still in her mother’s womb. After a few weeks in the hospital to meet milestones, Denver went home with her family—a trailblazer with a healthy future ahead.
Kenyatta and Derek say the procedure saved their daughter’s life and has the potential to do the same for other families. “It was never just about Denver,” says Kenyatta. “We also did it to help the next baby, and the next baby after that.”
