May 1, 2008 11:18 pm US/Central
Out Of Time: Little Jack Dies Waiting For A Heart
(WCCO)
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Jack Corbo spent all winter in the hospital where he battled a deadly respiratory virus and the flu. (File)
CBS
For the past three and a half years WCCO-TV has been following the story of Jack Corbo, a little boy fighting to get a new heart. During his fight there have been nearly 400,000 visits to the family's Web site, as Jack's parents have detailed their agonizing wait for a transplant.
Jack's wait is over. He died waiting for a heart on April 14.
Jack and his twin brother Cooper were born healthy but premature. Just after birth, Jack contracted a staph infection that lead to heart failure. In 2004, we first met Jack when he was just 4-months-old, just after he had received his first heart transplant.
Despite everything he went through he was always smiling, but the initial optimism faded. The new heart never worked well.
In 2007, he underwent open heart surgery and doctors determined the only hope was for a second transplant. Last December he went back on the transplant list and back into the hospital.
Jack was number one on the regional transplant list for a heart in his age group.
"The only offers we got were for infant hearts," said Jack's father Todd Corbo. But those hearts were too small.
Jack spent all winter in the hospital where he battled a deadly respiratory virus and the flu. Two weeks ago Jack became so weak that doctors decided the only hope was to put him on a mechanical ventilator so he could breathe.
But Jack fought off the attempts to put the tube down his throat. As he fought, Jack turned to the sign language his mother Robin Hicks Corbo had taught him.
"He signed that he was all done," said Robin.
"He said he was all done and the doctors asked us and we told them to stop. They took everything off of Jack and placed him in Robin's arms and that's where he passed away, in his mother's arms," added Todd.
Jack's parents say they are grateful for the time they had with him.
"We had the opportunity to tell him how proud we were of him and it was an honor to be his parents", said Todd.
"He has a perfect body now. This just wasn't supposed to be the way the story turned out," Robin said.
Every day in the United States, 18 people die waiting for an organ transplant. Through their Web site, the Corbo's have received messages from around the world, from people saying because of Jack they will sign up to be organ donors.
As a tribute to Jack and to call attention to the need for organ donation the Corbo's have kept his Caring Bridge Web site active and you can visit it by clicking here.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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