Isabella Piscione
Isabella was born with short bowel syndrome, which meant she couldn't eat food normally. She was given nutrition intravenously through a food substitute called total parenteral nutrition, or TPN. But then she developed liver damage, probably caused by the soybean oil in the TPN.
Isabella's condition worsened, and she was listed for a liver and bowel transplant. However, doctors at Mattel Children's Hospital UCLA offered an experimental treatment under compassionate use that replaced the soybean oil with fish oil.
Isabella was just over 6 months old when she began the treatment. After six months, her liver had healed and she no longer needed a transplant. This photo shows Isabella in October 2009, after her treatment.
(Photo courtesy of UCLA Health System)
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