Against the Odds shares the inspirational stories of people throughout the Southwest Ohio region who have overcome obstacles, and whose stories have inspired others along the way. If you have a nomination for this feature, please send the details to Life@CoxInc.com.
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When Chloe Luster was born prematurely, it quickly became clear that she would have to undergo three staged open heart surgeries to save her life, her mother said.
The 4-year-old from Covington, Ky., suffers from complex congenital heart defects and was born with half of a heart. She is a patient at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, her mother Gina Luster explained.
Chloe had her first open-heart surgery when she was 5 days old. A shunt was placed in her heart to allow blood to flow straight to her lungs. The second surgery was completed when Chloe was 5 months old, offering a “more permanent fix” to her heart condition, her mother said. On Aug. 31, 2012, at 4 years old, Chloe underwent her third surgery, which rerouted the blood flow in her heart. The success of this final surgery was crucial to Chloe’s survival. It was a success.
“She did absolutely phenomenal,” Gina Luster said of her daughter. “We were home from open heart surgery in five days. … Her cardiologist said that her body could not have been better from the surgery. They just couldn’t believe how wonderfully her system had taken to the surgery.”
Now, Chloe’s oxygen levels are much higher, and she has more energy. She is expected to be able to lead a “full life,” her mother said.
“She’ll be followed (for) the rest of her life, but for now, she is extremely on the other side,” Gina Luster said of Chloe. ” … A lot of children (with Chloe’s condition) don’t make it past a year, so for her to be going on five is absolutely amazing.”
Chloe said the other half of her heart is with God in heaven, and that the scar on her chest used to look like a star, and now is shaped like a butterfly.
“We have a poem that’s called, ‘Angel With a Half a Heart,’” Gina Luster said. “Basically what that said is that God made Chloe the way she (is), but she’s perfect. She has differences, but that’s the way God made her. … Her life is a true miracle. Each day, we thank God for keeping her here, and God has half of her heart, and one day it will be whole again.”
Gina Luster said she’s starting to look toward the future now. Chloe wants to take dance and gymnastic classes. She’s starting kindergarten in the fall.
“The reality is there that she does have a life-threatening illness,” she said of her daughter. “But a lot of people do. It’s how you cope with that and move forward.”
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