{"id":588645,"date":"2026-05-18T12:44:43","date_gmt":"2026-05-18T09:44:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/korabelov.info\/2026\/05\/588645\/when-it-seemed-impossible-ukrainian-medics-launched-a-helicopter-and-rescued-a-teenager\/"},"modified":"2026-05-18T12:44:46","modified_gmt":"2026-05-18T09:44:46","slug":"when-it-seemed-impossible-ukrainian-medics-launched-a-helicopter-and-rescued-a-teenager","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/korabelov.info\/en\/2026\/05\/588645\/when-it-seemed-impossible-ukrainian-medics-launched-a-helicopter-and-rescued-a-teenager\/","title":{"rendered":"When it seemed impossible, Ukrainian medics launched a helicopter and rescued a teenager"},"content":{"rendered":"

17-year-old Maksym<\/strong> from Rivne region<\/strong>, who recently received a donor heart transplant, is already recovering after the operation and making plans for the future. This was reported on 18 May <\/strong>2026 by the Ministry of Health of Ukraine<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The young man was born with a complex congenital heart defect \u2013 tetralogy of Fallot<\/strong>. This is a condition in which the heart has four anatomical abnormalities<\/strong> at once. At the age of one year and two months<\/strong> the boy underwent surgery, after which his heart restored its rhythm, and Maksym<\/strong> was able to start school and grow up alongside his peers. But after a few years the disease showed itself again. Doctors assume a severe infectious disease may have been a trigger for the heart. The past years were especially difficult for the boy: he had trouble breathing and walking, swelling appeared, and his heart enlarged so much that doctors concluded \u2013 the only chance for survival might be transplantation.<\/strong><\/p>\n

At the beginning of May, on a Sunday evening, the family received the call they had been waiting for: a donor heart had been found for Maksym<\/strong>. In Vinnytsia<\/strong>, after a stroke, one patient was diagnosed with brain death. His relatives consented to posthumous donation, and that decision gave a chance at life to several people at once<\/strong>. The Unified State Transplantation Information System<\/strong> determined that Maksym<\/strong> is immunologically compatible with the donor and can receive this heart. While the boy and his mother were urgently traveling to Kyiv<\/strong>, a team from the National Scientific Center of Cardiovascular Surgery and Hereditary Pathology named after M.M. Amosov<\/strong> went to the Vinnytsia region<\/strong>. To ensure the donor heart could be delivered to the operating room in the capital on time, the medics appealed for help to the National Police of Ukraine<\/strong>. Despite the war, a helicopter was deployed for this.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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“It was difficult, but we had to make it in time. We combined the efforts of several structures, many people \u2013 and did it. Thanks to the National Police of Ukraine. I am also grateful to colleagues from the Heart Institute, who joined our transplant team and together performed the transplant. All for the patient,” – said the director of the National Scientific Center of Cardiovascular Surgery and Hereditary Pathology named after M.M. Amosov, Vasyl Lazoryshynets<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

After the operation Maksym<\/strong> was already moved from intensive care to a regular ward. His indicators stabilized, the boy is gradually recovering and says he feels much better. Ahead of him is a return to studies and new plans. Maksym<\/strong> wants to finish school online this year, enter university and become a programmer.<\/p>\n

The Ministry of Health of Ukraine<\/strong> expressed condolences to the family of the deceased donor and thanked them for the difficult but important decision. It was the consent to posthumous donation that gave a chance at life to Maksym<\/strong> and other patients.<\/p>\n

The National Scientific Center of Cardiovascular Surgery and Hereditary Pathology named after M.M. Amosov<\/strong> is one of eight institutions<\/strong> in Ukraine where heart transplants are performed. According to the Ministry of Health<\/strong>, in 2026<\/strong> all such institutions have already performed 41 heart transplants<\/strong>, of which three<\/strong> were for children.<\/p>\n

Earlier we wrote:<\/strong><\/p>\n