Thanks from the bottom of our hearts

Little Rudy Maxwell-Jones featured on billboards and posters all over Birmingham last summer, when his parents offered their full backing to the Children's Heart Appeal. Rudy was just 36 hours old when surgeons at Birmingham Children's Hospital operated on his aortic valve, which was no wider than a pinhole.

Now a bouncy seven month old, you wouldn't guess by looking at Rudy that he was the tiny baby pictures with wires and tubes protruding from him, urging people to 'Please Don't Stop' giving to the Children's Heart Appeal.

Rudy was born with Critical Aortic Stenosis, a life-threatening narrowing of the aortic heart valve. This left his heart dangerously swollen because the blood was not being pumped out of it properly.

After 11 weeks in hospital, Rudy returned home to Sutton Coldfield with his parents, Jeanette Shiel and Rupert Maxwell-Jones last summer and has since gone from strength to strength.

Mum Jeanette says:
"We still can't get over how amazing it is having him home with us. He is the happiest and most chilled-out baby ever. He's always smiling and has just started to find his voice so he talks and shouts at us all now. He eats and sleeps really well. We just feel so lucky to have him with us and we can't thank the staff at Birmingham Children's Hospital enough for saving his life.

We are over the moon to find out that the Children's Heart Appeal has now reached its £2m fundraising target! We'd both like to say a huge thanks from us and Rudy to all of the fundraisers who helped to raise this. Without this support, we doubt our little boy would be here with us today, so it means the world to us." And Rudy has already benefitted from the new catheterisation laboratory as he returned to the hospital last week for surgery. Rudy's heart is now functioning at 100% compared to just 20% last July. Due to his improved heart function, his narrowed valve is struggling to keep up with his heart function, so Rudy underwent a catheterisation procedure to widen his valve in the new cath lab. Rudy is recovering well from his operation and only needed to spend a few days in hospital.

Dad Rupert says:

"Rudy is doing better than ever hoped he would but we know he might need more surgery and a valve replacement in the future. However, we know he is in the best place with world class facilities like the new hybrid theatre and the amazing cardiac team at Birmingham Children's Hospital."

See the news report on the Children's Heart Appeal on Central Tonight: