Baby girl's life saved after her dad donates his liver as time ran out to wait for donor

  • ITV News Meridian's reporter Chlöe Oliver has been to meet Sofia and her family

A baby girl from Curbridge in Hampshire, who had just weeks left to live, was saved with a liver transplant from her dad.

Sofia Barnett was diagnosed with biliary atresia after she was born.

The condition affects one in 10,000 babies and is where blockages appear in the tubes that carry bile from the liver to the gallbladder.

It is a rare liver disease that occurs in infants and there is no known cause.

Without surgery, biliary atresia can be fatal.

With no donors coming forward, her parents were tested to see if their livers were a match and could offer what’s called a ‘live donation’.

Not only was Pete a donor match, hospital blood tests revealed Sarah was actually pregnant with their second daughter Flossie.

Due to the pregnancy, the liver transplant was brought forward - which they didn’t know at the time - would end up saving Sofia’s life.

  • Sofia's mother says the difference one donation can make is life-changing and it's saved her daughter's life

Sofia's mother, Sarah Pett, told ITV News Meridian: "They picked up that her liver was failing, they knew it wasn’t working.

"By February they said she’s in end stage liver failure and we need to assess her for a transplant.

"You feel pretty helpless at the time all you can do is just do your parenting thing and pray for a miracle.

Sofia was diagnosed with biliary atresia when she was 7 weeks old

“There isn’t enough organs coming through, the mortality rate is around 25% of children die waiting for a liver transplant.

"Sofia was very close to being part of that. We had to pursue live donation as there aren’t enough live donations coming through.

"If anyone is on the fence we say go for it, you can’t take them with you, the difference it made to our family is priceless.”

Sofia's parents say their daughter is not out of the woods yet as they are health risks, but with her new liver she's living like a normal toddler.

Not many people die in circumstances that make it possible for them to donate their organs, which is why the NHS say every potential donor is precious.

Anyone living in the UK, Channel Islands or Isle of Man can register a decision on the NHS Organ Donor Register, there is no age limit, and parents can register their children.

  • A 30 second explainer about what organ donation entails

Having an illness or medical condition doesn't stop you from registering your organ donation decision, and specialist healthcare professionals decide in each individual case whether organs and tissue are suitable for donation.

You can register with the NHS to donate some or all of your organs here.

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