Heart baby Macey dies

Macey's parents Mark and Cathy Proctor

The baby who came to symbolise the organ shortage in the UK has died after a fruitless search for a donor.

Macey Proctor was just 12-days old when doctors and her parents decided to turn off her life support machine after no suitable donor could be found.

The only hope for Macey Proctor, who was born with four major heart defects, had been an immediate heart transplant.

But despite put on the national donor register at just two days old they found no suitable heart.

Macey gave up her struggle for life as her condition continued to deteriorate

A spokesman at the Royal Brompton Hospital, London

Her parents Mark and Cathy Proctor, from Carshalton, Surrey, blamed the shortage of organs on a backlash from the Alder Hey organ retention scandal.

Gave up struggle

A spokesman at the Royal Brompton Hospital, London, where Macey was being treated, said she had died at 5.30am on Thursday morning.

He said: "Sadly, Macey Proctor died earlier this morning.

"Macey gave up her struggle for life as her condition continued to deteriorate.

"The decision to withdraw life support was made by the family and doctors."

Macey had been kept alive on a heart bypass machine, but doctors warned her that her body would eventually be damaged by the equipment.

Macey was under the care of world-famous heart specialist Professor Sir Magdi Yacoub.

She was given a 12-hour operation to strengthen her heart as she waited for a donor.

Doctors twice set a deadline to switch off her machine, but these were extended in the hope a donor could be found.

An ante-natal scan at 20 weeks had shown that her heart was not working and her parents started appealing for donors.

But even before Macey was born Mark Proctor said he thought a backlash from Alder Hey would mean their baby would never get the heart she needed.

"It is such negative publicity to donorship that I don't think anyone is going to be too willing to say yes, you can donate something without worrying that more will be taken."