Andrea says she owes her life to Lakeridge Health supporters after giving birth to her first child in 2014. "Everything went well, and my husband and I were overjoyed to welcome little Oliver into our lives and family," she said. "But a few weeks later, out of the blue, I started bleeding a lot. Alarmed, my husband called 911 and soon I was in the back of an ambulance speeding toward Lakeridge Health."
You can imagine how shocked and scared Andrea must have felt. Especially being a new mom, facing a health scare isn't something you expect.
As soon as Andrea was admitted, the doctors and medical staff immediately ran a series of tests to determine the cause of her bleeding. Thankfully, she received life-saving treatment in the care of Dr. Sean Galante, an interventional radiologist.
"It's times like this when you realize how vital our local hospital really is. And it's when you're most grateful to have the very best care available right here in our own community," Andrea said. "I know the life-saving care I received at Lakeridge Health was only possible thanks to generous donors."
Tests revealed that Andrea was suffering from a uterine artery pseudo-aneurysm, a very rare condition that causes profuse bleeding in the uterus. She was already passing out from blood loss and had received several blood transfusions. Without immediate treatment her life was in danger and she faced the possibility of having an invasive emergency hysterectomy.
"My obstetrician consulted the interventional radiology team and I was rushed into the IR suite," Andrea explained. "Dr. Galante was able to quickly identify the pseudo-aneurysm and, using a catheter, injected tiny particles to stop the bleeding. I'm deeply grateful to Dr. Galante and the whole team at Lakeridge for the excellent medical care and treatment I received."
Andrea's story would have ended differently without the support of Lakeridge Health donors. It's your gifts that provide the tools and resources that help make life-saving treatment possible at our hospital. Even more, they became the precious gift of motherhood. More recently, Andrea was able to give birth to her second son, Nolan, without any complications -- something that would not have been possible had she received a hysterectomy. And it's all thanks to the cutting-edge, minimally-invasive surgery donor support makes possible.
"I hope others will join me in supporting our local hospital," Andrea said. "I’d encourage others to give as generously as they can to help provide quality health care for our Durham Region.”
