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Heather's Story

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Our precious angel, Milana Theresa Farnan, was born 6 weeks early (due to her mom having severe preeclampsia). She arrived at 10:14 in the morning on May 10, 2012 at Magee Women’s Hospital. She was born healthy and happy at 5 lbs. 11 oz. and 19 inches long. From there, Milana spent nine days in Magee's NICU to monitor her weight and temperature, being as how she was a preemie. However, all of our prayers were answered when our tiny princess came home weighing a healthy 5 lbs. 4 oz. on May 19. For the next 3 weeks, we cuddled, hugged and loved our little Milana non-stop! We adored every second! She was our little miracle. Our new family of four was happier than ever…visiting with friends & family, attending church, and spending time with Milana’s favorite (and older by 3 months) cousin Miles. Milana was a dream come true to have as a daughter, granddaughter, sister, niece, cousin and goddaughter. Milana’s name had such important meaning to us. Milana means “light of God”. Her middle name, Theresa, was in honor of her maternal great grandmother, Theresa Tyszkiewicz. Our idyllic world changed on the morning of June 12, 2012. Milana looked pale and seemed lethargic so we took her to the pediatrician. Dr. Hart saw us immediately. As a new mom, I was thinking & hoping that it was something routine and we would be in and out of the office. Instead, we ended up being transported to Children's Hospital by ambulance. The doctors at the hospital did test after test. They found & treated Milana for a UTI, but the doctors said that she wasn’t responding like a baby with only a UTI. Even with treatment, her condition was worsening. By evening, Milana needed a blood transfusion. As the middle of the night approached, our tiny miracle needed to be placed on a ventilator to help her breathe. Her blood pressure was dropping and her little heart was racing. The doctors were baffled and we were extremely worried. By morning, our Milana’s petite body was beginning to fail and we were helpless.

As we held Milana’s hands, the neonatal specialists told us that our angel was the sickest baby in the NICU and that any adult in Milana's condition would not have survived the first night. Our brave little pumpkin was a fighter as she kept trying to beat the infection. After several days of her (still unknown) condition worsening, the doctors informed us she would need a very risky emergency surgery to be placed on an ECMO Machine (which is life support) in order to try to save her life. As we sobbed, we told them to do what they needed to do to save our sweet baby. Milana lived on the ECMO machine (life support) for about 6 days while her condition still continued to worsen. The doctors were increasingly baffled by what was ailing Milana. Specialists from everywhere were trying to save our daughter. Milana’s time on ECMO had become even more dangerous. On Wednesday the 20th of June, Milana suffered a catastrophic brain bleed that was completely debilitating. She became unable to control her reflexes and began to take seizures all while her condition continued to worsen. Our brave angel now suffered from sepsis & multiple organ failure in addition to the catastrophic brain bleed. For the past 9 days, we never left her side. We had held her hand, stroked her cheek, talked to her and told her stories, prayed with her, told her we loved her, had her baptized and cuddled & comforted our courageous little angel the best we could. We just wanted Milana to know that mommy and daddy had done all that we could and we never gave up on here (and we never will). Milana’s grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and friends supported us constantly at the hospital.

Our sweet baby girl became a real angel in heaven on June 21, 2012. What made it even more heartbreaking to us was that Milana's actual term due date was June 21st, the day she passed. Our hearts were/are broken. We miss her more than words can say. She will always be our angel! After Milana’s passing, we were informed that our perfect daughter suffered from Acute Myeloid Leukemia. We appreciate everyone’s love, prayers and support. We hope to help other families in the NICU at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh as well as Magee Woman's Hospital. Finally, the main reason that we are beginning this division is so that Milana's name can live on in a positive way. She was so special to everyone that loved her!