Boy Survives Third Liver Transplant ‘With Flying Colors’

Seven-year-old Ronnie DeSillers, fighting infection, pneumonia and an inflamed pancreas, came through a third liver transplant “with flying colors” Thursday after his mother told him “you can’t keep a winner down.”

“With every obstacle he encounters, he just comes back stronger every time,” said Sue Cardillo, a Children’s Hospital spokeswoman.

The Miami boy, whose desperate need for a liver won support from President Reagan, received the liver of an unidentified child during a 10 1/2-hour operation.

In Critical Condition

The transplant, his second in less than three weeks, came on the heels of two operations to correct abdominal pain and internal bleeding. He was in critical condition after the latest surgery.

“It went very smoothly, and they’re calling this organ a perfect fit,” Cardillo said. “He really came through with flying colors.”

Ronnie’s mother, Maria DeSillers, said her son looked “remarkably better” than he did after the first two transplants.

Ronnie is the 15th child to undergo three liver transplants at Children’s Hospital, a spokesman said. One has received four livers, an 11-year-old New York child who is now at home.