05 February 2023 , 11:27
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A baby girl is fighting for life after being born with half a heart.
Four-month-old Rosalie Heatherington has had two operations and a third more concerning surgery will follow.
Her family are praying for her survival and her mum Beth Hetherington has barely left her side.
StokeonTrentLive reports the 19-year-old is now living in an apartment near Birmingham Children's Hospital funded by the Ronald McDonald House Charities.
Dad Connor Willdigg, 21, is driving back and forth to the hospital as he works to support his family.
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When Rosalie was still in the womb, it was discovered she had heart problems but doctors did not know how severe they would be.
Rosalie has a risky upcoming third operation
Rosalie recovering after one of her operationsThe newborn baby had her first operation at just four days old.
She was diagnosed with hypoplastic left heart syndrome and has a leaky valve on the right side of her heart.
Dependent on a hospital oxygen supply, she will now undergo a risky procedure to put stitches in the leak.
Beth's sister Shalana Bond, 31, has helped launch a fund-raising campaign for her young parents.
She said: "The leaky valve is the massive problem. We're struggling with that. Rosalie's next operation is in a couple of week's time.
"She's really dependent on oxygen. She needs to comes off the oxygen because she can't live like that. There's no quality of life. The next procedure is very risky and the one we're dreading.
"It's really tragic. We feel helpless and that's why we want to raise money for her.
"Beth has grown up a lot - I take my hat off to her because I have two kids of my own and to think of what she's going through - it's crazy.
"It's just heartbreaking. She is there constantly.
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Baby Rosalie was born with half a heart"We live in Stoke and trying to travel there and back is hard. We all feel so helpless and that's why we want to do the GoFundMe for her.
"Beth works in Chiquitos in Hanley and she carried on working even when she was heavily pregnant. She's on maternity leave now."
Shalana added: "Beth is doing fantastic. She's such a good role model. She amazes me every single day. She sits by Rosalie's side every day.
When she does leave her, she waits for her to go to sleep. You always think it won't happen to you or your family. We pray every day - there's still hope and that's what we need to hold onto."