NATION IN BRIEF : ILLINOIS : Child Who Got New Liver Heads Home
Well-wishers bade farewell to Alyssa Smith, the Schertz, Tex., toddler who received the nation’s first live-donor liver transplant. The 23-month-old girl played with a miniature tea set and alphabet magnets as about 30 doctors and hospital workers honored her with a party in the basement of the University of Chicago Hospital. Alyssa underwent the historic operation Nov. 27, when doctors removed part of her mother’s liver and transplanted it into the youngster. The mother, Theresa Smith, 29, lost her spleen during the procedure. Theresa Smith presented Alyssa’s doctor, Peter Whitington, with an invitation to Alyssa’s high school graduation in 2006.
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