Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Heart op fear for identical twin toddlers
IDENTICAL toddler twins may both need heart transplants after they fell seriously ill within weeks. Grace and Lilly Jeffery, 20 months, are side by side in hospital with dilated cardiomyopathy. The condition causes the heart to be weakened. Grace fell ill five weeks ago and is on a bypass machine, while Lilly got symptoms this week and is now sedated and on a ventilator at Bristol Royal Hospital for Children. Mum Leisa Foley, 33, of Plymouth, said: “My kids are fighting for their lives and I will do anything to save them.” She has started fundraising in case they need treatment abroad. Leisa added: “Some children have to have heart transplants. But it’s hard to find two hearts.”