Alice

Alice is the youngest of three siblings. Her mother, Mediatrice and her father, Bosco, both work in agriculture in bean fields.

At four years old, Alice began to have fast heart beats and vomit consistently. 

Alice does not attend school because the school didn't know which disease she had and they were scared it was infectious. 

Alice was diagnosed with a mitral regurgitation (MR). 

The heart's mitral valve does not close tightly, allowing blood to flow backward from the left ventricle into the left atrium. As a result, blood cannot move efficiently 

through the heart or to the rest of the body. Left untreated, severe mitral regurgitation can cause heart failure or heart rhythm problems. It can be either congenital or acquired. 

Save a Child's Heart brought Alice, her mother Mediatrice and nine other children from Rwanda to Israel to receive life-saving cardiac care. 

Mediatrice says "I am extremely happy to be here because my daughter will get the medical care I know she deserves and this is all I ever wanted. We do not have such a good life at home, our livings conditions and occupation is hard to live with but we are grateful to have one less worry for Alice's future." 

On August 22 and October 6, 2022, Alice successfully underwent two complex life-saving cardiac surgeries at The Ida Cabakoff IPCC for Save a Child's Heart in Israel. 

When we asked Alice what she wants to be when she's older, she said she just wants to grow tall like all the other kids in school back at home. 

The SACH team is proud to have given Alice a healthy heart and are happy to send her home to grow tall like her friends to a healthier and better life!