Dear Family and Friends,

October 11, 2023

I am writing to ask for your donations and support for my daughter, Emily Castillo.

In 1998 on her 16th birthday, Emily was having a manicure and passed out a few minutes later, she was admitted to the hospital where she was diagnosed with Parkinson’s white syndrome enlargement of the heart! She was given medication to treat the problem as years went by her health declined. She was not able to attend school, but was at home school. She received her high school diploma in 2000.

Emily was diagnosed with hyper trophic cardiomyopathy a disease that weakens the heart. Emily had an ICD defibrillator implanted in 2003 and 2005 Emily had an echocardiogram and determined that her heart was only 10% of her heart was working, and she was a candidate for a heart transplant, when she was encouraged by her grandmother to keep fighting, and to win this battle of her life!

She got called November 2026 at 24 years old when she receive her first chance at life with her first heart transplant on November 20, 2006 by Jackson Memorial Hospital. After she was with Millerone medication because I had hypertension and Dr.Javier Jimenez and Dr. Si Pham and Gladys Krebs treated her, waited a year and four months the first time everything they were the best team ever.

Back In 2009 she went into a coma because her heart was rejecting for a month and she was on echo machine to get her heart back to work again, in November 2022 they found out she had vasculopathy after transplant for 17 yrs.

In November 2022, her heart ejection fraction went down to 33% and they had to put an impeller device in her, and had to place a stent as well. She got worse and her kidneys have been fluctuating and got worse as well acting really bad so therefore she would need a new heart and would need a new kidney!

She had a son, Prophet, he’s four years old, born on December 1 of 2018 and he’s a blessing! Her father has passed away two years in October.

On October 3, 2023 she successfully received a heart and kidney transplant from the same donor from Cleveland Clinic Weston Florida! These transplants were in a matter of two weeks being on the list!

From Emily: God always has my back and guides my ways and he never has abandon me! God is a proven fact I’m living I want to give a big thank you to the Cleveland Weston team in Weston, Florida, Dr. Nicolas Broozi, Dr. Cedric Sheffield and Dr. Shalini Saith that did my kidney for all they’ve done for me I appreciate it at this second chance at life! Thank you My God for keep me safe, a Blessed from you always!

October 10, 2023

I was 24 years old when I received my heart transplant, and I was on the list for a year and four months as I was very ill three years after that,2009 they did a catheterization and went into a coma. Because my heart was having rejection at the time . I was in a coma for about a month had an ECMO machine and plasma on me and other devices. I woke up in a month out of it, I was doing very well, if it wasn’t for my family and the group of positive energy people I had around me to keep me going and always have faith and last but not least never to give up now I’ve had my heart and lived a second chance at life and back in 2018. God blessed me with my first child that made me a mother and stronger and to keep pushing for life. in November 2022 I went to see my doctor in South Miami hospital because my right arm was bothering me and at that time he did a stress cardiogram while doing exam I couldn’t complete it at all so he stopped he checked my ejection efraction and it went from a 55-60%. That is good and normal to a 40% which is very bad. My doctor decided at that point on the following Monday to do a catheterization while I was under going the catheterization I went into VTEC mode and my heart was acting strange so he decided to admit me and have me transferred to Transplant Miami Jackson Hospital with the transplant doctors team that will continue my care as to follow and for precautions they admitted me on November 20 2222 they put me in the ICU and was there for two weeks. Spent all the holidays and consider to put a stent into my main heart artery due to my arteries are clogged so now I was diagnosed with cardiac allograft vasculopathy it’s something that you get after having the heart transplant for so long since I’ve had my heart transplant for 16 years that God has blessed me with to place a stent in the meantime, while I get on the transplant list once again, while they did the procedure of the stent, they placed an impeller device protecting me if God for bid something was to happen . they checked me often with lab work and I have no rejection. I’ve been doing all the tests in the work up test as required for new Transplant so I can get back on the Transplant list for the heart and now kidney transplant as they also brought up to my attention . so using contrast and iodine, the procedures has damage my Kidneys worse.