Bourne woman recalls her operation 60 years ago using new heart-lung machine at Papworth Hospital after spending Christmas in hospital for second surgery
Published: 08:00, 02 January 2021
A patient who had to stay in hospital for Christmas following a heart operation has recalled her first surgery 60 years ago using a new heart-lung machine.
Diane Barker, now 66, had her first surgery at Papworth Hospital when she was just five years old. She was only the fourth patient to undergo surgery using the new machine.
Just before Christmas, she had to return to the new Papworth Hospital to repair a problem with one of her heart valves and to be fitted with a pacemaker. She is still receiving treatment on one of the hospitalâs surgical wards, having also had a problem with her lungs.