Elliott Livingstone, the two-year-old desperately seeking a new heart

'Cheeky' two-year-old has a Thomas the Tank engine sticker on the artificial heart that has kept him alive for eight months

Jamie Merrill
Monday 23 November 2015 21:02 GMT
Comments
Elliott Livingstone, whose story we will be following
Elliott Livingstone, whose story we will be following

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Two-year-old Elliott is a "cheeky" little boy who has a Thomas the Tank Engine sticker on his Berlin heart machine, the artificial heart that has kept him alive since his own heart failed eight months ago.

Fitting Elliott with the Berlin heart required major surgery and he now has four tubes pumping blood around his tiny body.

They keep him alive but the machine has left him confined to the wards of Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) until a new heart is found.

A third of children like Elliott will die before a new heart becomes available for transplant, which is why The Independent's Give to Gosh appeal is funding a new specialist 14-bed unit for children with heart failure.

Elliott recently celebrated his birthday at GOSH, on the same day as his friend Marley Scott turned seven.

Marley has gone home after a successful transplant, but Elliott is still waiting. "Some people think seeing another successful transplant makes us jealous," said his mother Candace. "But I tell myself that all the children here are waiting for a heart, but it's just not the same heart."

To Give to GOSH go to: http://ind.pn/1Mydxqt

To find out more about our appeal and why we're supporting GOSH go to: http://ind.pn/1MycZkr

DONATE
NOW

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in