World’s first partial heart transplant proves successful through soon to be two-year-old

DURHAM, NC (WWAY) — Researchers have spent more than a year following the progress of the world’s first partial heart transplant of an infant at Duke Children’s Hospital and Health Center. 

The patient is a boy from Leland and this pioneering procedure is making medical history. 

Owen Monroe was only 17 days old when he had open heart surgery after being diagnosed with Truncus Arteriosus.  

It’s a disease that causes only one heart valve to form instead of two. 

“I joke that Owen’s best quality and trait is that he is truly just happy to be alive,” Owen’s Mom, Tayler Monroe, said. 

Previously children born with Truncus Arteriosus would need multiple surgeries throughout their life. But little Owen Monroe’s parents decided to put their son’s life into the hands of a team from Duke Children’s Hospital and Health Center.  

Before Owen, partial heart transplant surgery had not been attempted on a human.   

“They asked me if I had ever done one before and I said, ‘well our team has done five in piglets,” Chief of Pediatric Cardiac Surgery Joseph Turek said. 

Owen’s parents, Tayler and Nick Monroe said they took a leap of faith when deciding to move forward with the procedure.   

“I think sometimes trusting the unknown is hard and scary, but the rewards are well worth it in the end,” Tayler said. 

Most children think of their parents as superheroes, but in Owen’s case, Tayler and Nick said it’s the opposite. Owen is their hero.  

“The greatest outcome would be that this would be a one and done thing and it looks like that’s what it’s ending up being,” Nick said. 

The doctor who led the lifesaving surgery said Owen has made history.  

“So, it was really a leap of faith by the Monroe family, and a leap that’s going to help thousands of children in the future,” Turek said. 

Turek said that same leap of faith paved the way for a domino heart transplant. This procedure is named that because of the domino effect it has, which is the ability to save two lives at once.  

“Sometimes we’ve had situations where hearts were donated and maybe a child only needed one of the two valves and we were able to split those valves and says this child’s going to get one valve and this child’s going to get another,” Turek said. 

From taking 14 medications, to now two pills a day, Owen’s parents said he is a happy and healthy child who is hitting all his milestones and even surpassing them.