BRAVEHEART: BABY GIRL SURVIVES HEART SWELLING TO SIZE OF ORANGE

A baby girl has become the youngest British patient to receive a life-saving cardiac operation after her heart swelled to twice its normal size within days of her birth. Little Phoebe Whittle was just four weeks old when medics had to battle to save her life from a congenital defect which gave her tiny heart only a third of the oxygen it needed to work. Mum Charlotte 27, and husband Carl, 32, looked on in horror as she failed to breathe normally and turned blue within days of being born. Phoebe had been born with ALCAPA, Anomalous Left Coronary Artery from the Pulmonary Artery, that meant the artery to her heart muscle was connected incorrectly, starving it of oxygen.As a result, Phoebe's heart ballooned to twice its size - swelling from the size of a walnut to the size of an apple. But incredibly, the tiny tot - dubbed 'Braveheart' by her proud parents, made a stunning recovery following groundbreaking surgery at Alder Hey Children's Hospital

Other great stories
PELICANS RUFFLE EACH OTHER'S FEATHERS

THIS is the moment one irritated pelican nearly swallows the entire head of his unlucky competitor .

TWO SALVATION ARMY STAFF SUSPENDED OVER RAPE HELP REFUSAL

A good samaritan who came to the aid of a rape victim has told how they were turned away from the Salvation Army because "they only help men" .

OLYMPIC ATHLETES LINE UP IN LEGO 2012 AQUATIC CENTRE

If you tune into primetime coverage of the 2012 Olympic Games, you’re most likely going to see London’s new Aquatic Center from many angles as athletes from all around the globe compete for the top spot on the podium .

VISOR FASHION FAIL

FROM motorcycling to department store shopping these spookily faceless people are part of the Chinese-fad for wearing protective solar-visors in public .

TRANSGENDER WOMAN SPENDS £25K TO BECOME BEAUTY QUEEN

A transgender woman has beaten the bullies after spending £25K on surgery to become a beauty pageant queen .

BRAVE LEOPARD BEFRIENDS A CROC

A brave leopard kicks back and relaxes in the sunshine - just inches from an enormous crocodile .

VICTIM SAVES HER RAPIST'S LIFE AFTER HE OVERDOSES FOLLOWING ATTACK

A woman has told how she saved the life of her own rapist after he overdosed on pills shortly after attacking her .

HOURS FROM DEATH: TOXIC SHOCK SYNDROME NEARLY KILLED ME AFTER LEAVING TAMPON IN FOR FIVE DAYS

A mother-of-one has told how she nearly died after contracting toxic shock syndrome from a tampon .

MESMERISING FIELD PATTERNS

FULL OF STUNNING colours and swirling shapes, the furrows on these fields create a mix of mesmerising patterns .

PORTRAITS IN PAKISTAN

A photographer from the United Arab Emirates travelled to Pakistan where he captured the lives of local people in a series of expressive portraits .

AVATAR-STYLE WISTERIAS WILL LEAVE YOU FEELING TREE-UMPHANT

A TEN-THOUSAND square foot wide Avatar-style grove is such a beauty it will leave you feeling VINE .