British Girl, Who Had 7-Organ Transplant, Dies After Stroke

Five-year-old Laura Davies, who captured hearts around the world--from fellow Britons including Princess Diana to Saudi Arabia’s King Fahd--died Thursday, nearly two months after her second multiple organ transplant.

Leslie Davies and his wife, Fran, decided to have their daughter’s breathing machine disconnected after she had a stroke and lost consciousness Wednesday night. The stroke caused irreversible brain damage, said Dr. Andreas Tzakis of Children’s Hospital.

“We’re happy that when there was no hope, that God took care at that time,” he said. “We undoubtedly failed, and we undoubtedly did all we could.”

When she was feeling well, Laura delighted reporters and photographers who recorded her progress, singing and posing for them.

Many Britons contributed money for her care, including Princess Diana. But her parents reportedly received hate mail from critics who felt prolonging her life was cruel.

Laura received seven organs--a liver, stomach, pancreas, large and small intestines and two kidneys--on Sept. 16. The liver and small intestine replaced organs that were sewn into Laura in July, 1992, to correct short-gut syndrome, an intestinal deformity that left her unable to eat.

Doctors discovered cancer-like growths on her liver and lungs two weeks ago. Tzakis said the growths, started by the common Epstein-Barr virus, may have harmed other organs as well.

Tzakis said at a news conference there were three criticisms of Laura’s second transplant--the cost, loss of the donor organs to another child and Laura’s suffering.

Laura’s parents, who live in Manchester, England, raised nearly all of the money for the operation, he noted. Tzakis said it would have been unfair to Laura to deny her organs she needed to live simply because she had already undergone one operation.