A toddler has defied the odds after he was born with just half a heart.
Charlie Taylor, two, from Grimsby, was born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a condition where the left ventricle of the heart does not develop properly.
Doctors revealed the devastating news to his parents at the 20 week scan and told them their baby was unlikely to live very long if they carried on with the pregnancy.
His parents were given options to terminate following the scan, give him comfort care or to perform surgery at just a few hours old, reports Grimsby Live.
Courtney said: "When they first told us, we were sent to Leeds to have another scan to make sure.
"They confirmed Charlie would be born with half a heart and I was absolutely devastated when they told us.
"His dad, Connor, was in denial, it really took a toll on him.
"That was the moment it all became real for us, we were told he may not live very long, but we had to give him a chance, if we didn't, who else would".
The couple decided they would give their baby every chance of survival and agreed to surgery.
Charlie went on to be born in Leeds and at just three days old underwent heart surgery.
Courtney said: "At just three days old, they performed open heart surgery on Charlie for 12 hours to make sure he was stable. We were told the next 48 hours after were critical to his survival.
"He ended up nearly losing his life with a collapsed lung in that time.
He miraculously survived the operation and stayed at the hospital for five and a half weeks before returning to Grimsby.
For Courtney, this was a very testing time.
"While he was in the High Dependency Unit, myself and Connor were learning how to take care of him going forward, something we never thought we'd have to do."
At four months old, Charlie had further open heart surgery, lasting 10 hours. Again, doctors informed his parents that the next 48 hours would be critical to his survival.
But during the recovery period, Charlie suffered a wound infection, leaving him in agonising pain.
Doctors tried to take his stitches out, but upon doing so the wound exploded.
After a further five days, Charlie's condition improved and he was allowed to return home.
Now, Charlie is living as normal a life as possible and shouldn't need another operation until he is four or five years old.
His condition means he struggles to play or run around as much as other children his age, but his family try to make each day as normal as possible.
There is no cure for his condition and the surgeries and treatment are to prolong his life for as long as possible.
Courtney and Connor live in the hope that one day he will be able to have a heart transplant to give them more time with their cherished son.
Courtney said the thought of her son having a limited life means she rarely leaves his side.
She said: "I've only ever left Charlie once or twice in his life as I'm scared something might happen.
"The stress we experience is unbelievable, but you just have to keep going for Charlie's sake. Without the help of charities like Little Hearts Matter and the Children's Heart Surgery Foundation, we'd never have got to where we are now.
"We're hoping to raise awareness of Charlie's condition by asking all those at his nursery, First Steps in Grimsby, to wear red next Friday (February 11) in support of Little Hearts Matter."
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