Sister's £450K Gift Transforms UK Heart Transplant Research

When Terry from Leicestershire received a revolutionary heart transplant in 2015, he became one of the first people in Europe to receive a heart using a pioneering technique. Now his sister Wendy is paying that miracle forward with £453,611 to accelerate the research that saved his life.

Royal Papworth Hospital performed Terry's transplant using a non-beating heart, known as donation after circulatory death. Before this breakthrough, donor hearts could only come from patients who died a brain-stem death but whose hearts were still beating.

The technique has transformed transplant medicine across the UK. Today, this method accounts for 25% of all adult heart transplants in Britain, and Royal Papworth has performed 147 of these procedures, more than any other UK hospital.

Wendy Tomlin-Hess, who now lives in the United States, says she's grateful to be in a position to thank the hospital that gave her brother a second chance. "We are extremely grateful to Terry's heart donor and their family, who gave him a gift we could never repay," she explained.

Her donation will fund three critical research projects. The first aims to improve how doctors assess donor heart viability, potentially increasing UK heart transplants by 20% and helping more of the 300 patients currently waiting for transplants.

The second project seeks to extend donor heart preservation from six hours to six days using advanced techniques. This breakthrough would not only expand the donor pool but also create new opportunities for testing life-saving medications on diseased hearts.

The third project supports the Morgan device, a cost-effective heart perfusion machine designed for both adults and children that could reduce NHS expenses and enable more pediatric heart transplantation. Clinical trials will move forward with regulatory support to bring this innovation to patients faster.

Part of Wendy's gift honors her late husband Robert, whose passion for medical philanthropy began after losing his son Christopher in 1973. Robert cared deeply for Terry and even treated him to a fishing trip in Alaska after his recovery, where they caught King Salmon weighing up to 40 pounds.

The Ripple Effect

Wendy's generosity reaches far beyond her brother's story. Around 200 heart transplants happen in the UK each year, but 300 people need them at any given time. The research her donation enables could close that gap, bringing hope to families across Britain who are watching loved ones wait for a second chance at life.

The gift strengthens Royal Papworth's Clinical Research Facility, funding a dedicated medical officer who will accelerate early-phase trials. This means promising therapies will reach patients faster, turning laboratory breakthroughs into bedside treatments.

Krystyna Grant, Managing Director of Royal Papworth Charity, says the donation will help the hospital continue leading innovation in heart care and ensure more patients receive the gift of life.