Marcela travels across the globe for life-saving surgery

Marcela was born in Guatemala with cardiac and abdominal malformations that reduced her oxygen flow and caused her heart to form outside of her chest cavity. Doctors told her parents, Isabel and Edgar, that Marcela would not survive, but her parents refused to accept this outcome. Fortunately, a TV interview about Marcela’s condition connected the family to Boston Children’s Benderson Family Heart Center. The cardiac surgery team closed the hole in her heart and relieved the obstruction of blood flow. In a separate surgery a year later, doctors placed her heart inside her chest cavity. Today, Marcela is happy and healthy and enjoys playing with her family. Her family is forever grateful for the care she received at Boston Children’s and all the support everyone provided through Marcela’s journey.