Local family raises awareness for birth defect

Wake Forest, NC – Fallbrook residents Francesca and Gabriel Garcia learned of congenital diaphragmatic hernia after their daughter, Francesca Garcia (named after her mother), was born. Francesca and Gabriel share their daughter's journey with CDH to promote awareness of the condition.

CDH is a birth defect that affects over 52,000 children worldwide every year. During gestation, the diaphragm fails to fully form, often allowing abdominal organs to reach the chest cavity and restrict lung growth. There is a 50% chance of survival with CDH and the cause is still unknown.

The Garcia family was featured Feb. 22 on the CDH Radio Show, a weekly podcast run by CDH International, the world's largest charity for Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia. The family will also be featured on the April 19 CDH Telethon, which is global Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia Awareness Day.

About their daughter's condition, her mother said, "We did not know until after birth. Francesca was full term. I had no complications during my pregnancy. She was a c-section. Francesca had a true knot in her umbilical cord. So doing an emergency c-section saved her life from that but little did we know there were more health issues to come." She had a left-sided CDH which allows for the possibility of the stomach, intestines, and sometimes the liver to move (herniate) up into the baby's chest.

In the NICU, "She had four surgeries, from ECMO, to her repair, and feeding tube. They are all so scary. ECMO was the worst. At that time, we were given a 3% chance of survival rate. Rady's and Kaiser's NICU were amazing! They were my home for 104 days. My family. The nurses, the doctors, all were just so supportive."

(Editor's note: According to the Mayo Clinic, "In extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), blood is pumped outside of your body to a heart-lung machine that removes carbon dioxide and sends oxygen-filled blood back to tissues in the body.")

Francesca also said, "Coming home with a CDH baby is scary. Any sick baby is scary. We already as parents have no idea what we're doing, but now we have to be a nurse, a doctor, a physical therapist, it is a lot. We did it. And now she is as happy and healthy as we could wish for. She is a survivor! Francesca is the sweetest, loving, caring, smart young lady I know. She is the best big sister to her brother Jovanni. She plays tennis now and then goes back to gymnastics!."

The Garcia's have this to share about CDH International: "CDHi/ Cherubs are amazing. When we first found out about Francesca, we had no idea what CDH was. We learned a lot from them. We read stories about survivors and Nabil who did not. But to know we were not alone helped the most."

According to CDH International, congenital diaphragmatic hernia is as common as cystic fibrosis and spina bifida but has little awareness and very little funding.

CDH International is headquartered in North Carolina. They have helped over 6,500 CDH families in all 50 states and 74 countries, through patient services, raising awareness and funding, and participating in global research. Their mission is to support affected families, facilitate research, and raise awareness for Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia.

The Garcia family currently lives in Fallbrook. To learn more or to make a donation in honor of Francesca Garcia, visit them at http://www.cdhi.org.

Submitted by CDH International.