Month-old British boy survives first operation after being airlifted to Italy for treatment after NHS says he was too sick to go under the knife

A one-month-old British boy has survived his first operation after being airlifted to Italy for treatment after the NHS said he was too sick to go under the knife.

He is now recovering from a second operation to save his life.

The critically ill baby was taken from a hospital in Bristol after Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni personally intervened to ensure the sick child could travel to Rome to be treated for a congenital heart defect.

An Italian ambulance landed in Bristol after being loaded onto a specially equipped military aircraft, complete with specialist medics.

That’s what the baby’s father said his heart is ‘overflowing with joy’ after his son was successfully airlifted.

The Italian national, known only as DM, appealed directly to Ms Meloni and her government for help and she worked closely with the family to transport them to the Italian capital.

Speaking to MailOnline, Simon Pillon, the former Italian senator involved in the baby’s transfer, said: ‘I’ve just spoken to the father and he’s told me the baby is doing well and the doctors are impressed his will to live.

‘He underwent a first operation, but a second operation was postponed so as not to tire him out too much.’

The family is together, including the baby’s four-year-old brother and mother.

Mr Pillon said: ‘It’s clear they want him to get strong so they can return to Britain, but they will have to wait and for now the whole family is in Rome.’

After the successful airlift from Bristol to Rome, the Italian father, originally from Treviso and married to a Nigerian in Britain, expressed his gratitude to everyone involved.

It is understood the child’s parents, who have not been identified, were told specialist treatment for their son’s congenital heart defect would not be possible in Britain.

Mr Pillon said: ‘In Britain doctors did not feel it was appropriate to allow the child to undergo surgery. They had given him palliative care and a hearing was already scheduled for April 22.

‘When they saw the transfer and treatment protocol, they were convinced and consented to the transfer.

‘Initially they had pushed hard for an abortion once the prenatal diagnosis had been made, but the parents, both Catholic, refused.’

Following Mrs Meloni’s appeal for help to save their son, events unfolded quickly this week and the family were in Rome on Tuesday.

In a statement to MailOnline, the Italian father and his wife thanked everyone involved.

The father, who has lived in Britain for years and also has an older child, said: ‘Both my wife and I have hearts overflowing with joy at what is happening.

‘Now we hope that the entire medical process goes well and that our child’s recovery takes place quickly.

“We sincerely thank Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Undersecretary Alfredo Mantovano and the officials of the Council Presidency, including in particular Councilors Nicola Guerzoni and Francesco Farri, who have made their indispensable contribution.

‘Special thanks go to the chief doctors Professor Galletti and Professor Di Chiara and to the staff of the Bambin Gesù Children’s Hospital who decided to take the matter to heart.

‘Big thanks also to the Deputy Diplomatic Adviser Alessandro Cattaneo, to the Italian Embassy and to the Italian Consul in London Domenico Bellantone and for the discreet and continuous support of the British Hospital for following our son and for allowing the transfer without obstacles.

“We thank the Italian Air Force and in particular the Flight Office and the leadership of the 46th Air Brigade for making the transfer possible.”

A specially adapted ambulance arrived at Bristol Royal Hospital for Children to collect the critically ill baby.

To avoid exposing the little boy to too many transfers, an innovative solution was found involving an Italian ambulance transfer to Britain.

The specialized ambulance arrived at the plane from Bambino Gesù Hospital with two chief doctors dealing with cardiac surgery and resuscitation.

The vehicle was then loaded onto the Air Force C-130 and taken to Bristol.

After arriving, the child was quickly discharged and taken ten minutes away to an airport, where a plane was waiting to take him back to Rome for treatment.

The arrival of the Italian ambulance was the culmination of the concerned family’s appeal to the Italian Prime Minister.

The family had prepared for a legal battle with the hospital and planned to file an application with the High Court on Monday.

However, a lengthy court battle was avoided after a deal was struck to see the family flown to Rome on an Italian government-funded plane.

After arriving in Rome on Tuesday, the baby was treated at the Vatican-funded Bambino Gesu children’s hospital, where he underwent a double operation.

Speak with The times, the father thanked the Italian government for their help. He said: ‘My wife and I are very happy and relieved.’

He also thanked the doctors and nurses at Bristol Royal Hospital ‘for smoothly authorizing and supporting us and our son through this process.’

Simone Pillon, the Italian lawyer representing the parents, said: “We are very pleased to have been able to demonstrate to Britain that it is possible to work together and safely transfer children with serious medical conditions from Britain to Rome.” for specialist treatment. .’

Mr Pillon was involved in Indi Gregory’s case last year.

Indi, who had an incurable genetic mitochondrial disorder, was at the center of a legal battle last year involving her parents in several High Court and Court of Appeal cases over life-sustaining treatment.

Ms. Meloni became involved in the case again and intervened and made her a citizen in a last-minute legal effort to get her to a hospital in Rome for treatment.

But that attempt failed and her parents Dean Gregory and Claire Staniforth were told her breathing tube would be removed.

She was transferred from the Queen’s Medical Center in Nottingham (QMC) to a hospice where she died in the early hours of November 13, 2023.

In a statement to The Times, a spokesperson for Bristol Royal Hospital said officials were “working with Bambino Gesu Children’s Hospital to support the safe transfer of a newborn patient to Rome. Due to patient confidentiality, it would not be appropriate to go into specific details about a patient’s care.”