‘We’re very blessed’: Thea Hattersley, 2, gets life-changing liver transplant

Little Thea had spent more than half her life in hospital. She endured numerous surgeries before finally receiving a new liver, which has given her a chance at a normal childhood.

Thea Hattersley is on track to spend her first Christmas at home with her family after receiving a “life-changing” liver transplant.

The Adelaide child became one of the youngest Australians to join the organ transplant waitlist after being born premature in May 2021 with an abdominal cyst and biliary atresia – a rare disease that blocks bile ducts in the liver.

Thea spent the first year of her life in hospital, undergoing surgeries to remove her cyst at two days old and to connect her gut straight to her liver at two months, before being placed on the waitlist for a new liver.

Her second Christmas was in a hospital ward, too. But the two-year-old’s mum, Mia Fulgencio, is hopeful her daughter will be at their Morphett Vale home when Santa comes this year, given the success of her transplant at Melbourne’s Royal Children’s Hospital.

Mia Fulgencio and her daughter, Thea, who recently received a liver transplant at Melbourne’s Royal Children’s Hospital. Picture: Roy VanDerVegt

“It’s a special one this year, this will be Thea’s first time at home for Christmas, knock on wood,” Ms Fulgencio said. “We’ve even got a tree.

“It’s hard to comprehend how much our lives have changed (because of the transplant).

“We can go see the Christmas lights now, (Thea’s 11-year-old brother) William had his graduation this week and there was no way I could have taken Thea before because she had to be connected to her IV drip at 6pm every night. But we all could go as a family.”

The 12-hour surgery that changed Thea and her family’s lives began at midday one day in August – just weeks after she became one of the faces of a DonateLife campaign to encourage Australians to register as organ and tissue donors.

Ms Fulgencio and her husband, Brett, had received the call that a suitable liver had been found late the night before and jumped on the first flight from Adelaide to Melbourne in the morning.

They didn’t want to get her their hopes up, as this was the second time they had raced to the Royal Children’s after being told a match had been found. That experience ended in heartbreak when the liver was deemed unsuitable after they arrived.

Thea was diagnosed with biliary atresia at birth. Picture: supplied

This time around, the transplant went ahead and Thea’s parents experienced a “rollercoaster of emotions”.

“You’re happy and grateful. (But I was also) terrified,” Ms Fulgencio said.

“This was Thea’s fourth surgery but it never gets any easier, no matter how much you try and mentally prepare for it. None of her surgeries had been that long, it was a massive one.”

The transplant was a success. But a tough week in ICU followed for Thea, who struggled with being weaned off heavy sedatives.

“It was really hard to cuddle her because she was connected to so much (machinery),” Ms Fulgencio said.

“But Thea honestly went leaps and bounds. After one week, she was back in the ward (and) getting back to her normal self – eating, walking around, playing with toys.”

Thea and her parents were able to return home a month after the surgery. They then enjoyed their first holiday as a family of four, visiting Gawler Caravan Park in South Australia.

Thea no longer needs the IV drip. She can eat and drink orally, although her medication is still delivered through a nasogastric tube.

Her medications will be reviewed in February, and she must wait at least a year to attend childcare. But Ms Fulgencio is hopeful she could be “like a normal baby” soon.

Thea was on the waitlist for a liver transplant for more than a year. Picture: supplied

Thea, Mia and her family will enjoy their first Christmas all together at home this year. Picture: Roy VanDerVegt

“I wish we could thank our donor family,” she said through tears.

“I wish they knew what sort of life we lived before the transplant, when Thea was getting treatment every week because her liver was failing, when we would connect her to an IV every night because she also had short gut and couldn’t absorb enough nutrients to live and grow.

“I hope they find peace in knowing they’ve helped so many families.

“(Thea) is living proof of the help (organ donation) gives families. It’s life-changing. We’re very blessed and very grateful.”

DonateLife is urging all Australians aged 16-plus to take one minute to register as organ and tissue donors at donatelife.gov.au, or via three taps in the Medicare app, this Christmas. Anyone who registers should then tell their family their wishes.

“Give the gift of hope to more than 1800 Australians who are waiting for a lifesaving organ transplant,” DonateLife Victoria medical director Rohit D’Costa said.

“One organ donor can save the lives of up to seven people and help many more through eye and tissue donation.”

Originally published as ‘We’re very blessed’: Thea Hattersley, 2, gets life-changing liver transplant