Providence heart transplant team saves life of young mother

By Web staff

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    PORTLAND, Oregon (KPTV) — Cheyenne Tallmon is a mother to a toddler, Charlotte, and a fiancée. She is also a heart transplant recipient.

At 26 years old and 32 weeks pregnant, her heart was failing.

After an emergency C-section, Cheyenne was flown from Central Oregon to Providence St. Vincent, where a team of doctors and care staff worked to keep her alive.

“It was very emotional, I would say, for all of us. I think all heart failure cases are very, very sad in nature, but when it comes to a new mother, I think it hits us a little deeper,” said Providence St. Vincent Cardiologist Dr. Vidang Nguyen. “We all knew that we were doing it for Cheyenne, in terms of trying to save her life and prolong her life, but also doing it for Charlotte, who really needs her mother. We didn’t want to start her life and her journey without having her mom by her side.”

One treatment option was a device that helps the heart pump blood.

“We were hoping that my heart would recover on its own. After a few more weeks, they decided that a heart transplant would be the best option for me. My heart just could not work on its own,” said Tallmon.

It became clear Cheyenne would need a transplant. She waited for nearly 90 days before a heart was available.

“There are a lot of factors that impact how long someone will wait. It’s body size, blood type, and then for women who have given birth, the fact that they may form antibodies as a result of the birth, which makes finding a donor match more challenging. I do think this was something that played a role in extending her wait time,” said Dr. Nguyen.

Cheyenne is thankful for the doctors and nurses who took care of her.

“It’s definitely important to be surrounded by positive people and people who care about you. And the entire heart transplant team, even pre-transplant, they were absolutely amazing,” Tallmon said.

“It’s the reason we do what we do in our jobs every day. Why we have such a large team that rallies around trying to get people to transplantation. It’s really the best feeling,” said Dr. Nguyen.

Cheyenne knows she wouldn’t be here if not for the organ donor. It’s now been almost a year since her transplant, and she plans to reach out to her donor’s family soon.

“I would say that I am very sorry for their loss. But also, thank you to my donor, because I am here, and I get to watch my daughter grow up. There’s not really many words you can say to express the gratitude and thankfulness I have to be sitting here today,” she said.

To become an organ donor, register with Donate Life Northwest.

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