As the parents of a child whose life a specialized cardiac and respiratory support system known as extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) saved, Cyndi and Greg Tufaro were pleased to learn that The Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital (BMSCH) at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH) recently launched its own ECMO program.
Cyndi and Greg, founders of a tax-exempt nonprofit established in loving memory of their daughter Marisa, who died two years ago at the age of 13 after contracting post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder (PTLD), a rare form of blood cancer, have made a generous donation from The Marisa Tufaro Foundation to support BMSCH’s ECMO program.
The Marisa Tufaro Foundation, which helps pediatric patients and other children in need throughout the greater Middlesex County area, has enjoyed a longstanding partnership since its inception less than two years ago with BMSCH.
Marisa was under the loving care for her entire life of Joseph Gaffney, MD, Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Division Chief, Pediatric Cardiology at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, thus the Tufaro family has a special connection with BMSCH.
The Marisa Tufaro Foundation has previously supported BMSCH’s Child Life program, art therapy program and provided technology for the hospital’s newly renovated Gorrie Teen Lounge, helping to ensure BMSCH’s adolescent patients have tools that allow them to communicate, learn, play, and interact in a safe and fun environment.
Greg was recently afforded the opportunity to meet members of BMSCH’s ECMO team in the hospital’s ECMO simulation lab. Greg said he was struck by the team’s compassion for children who require ECMO and their families, and by the team’s passion for being able to provide ECMO to patients in need.
BMSCH began providing ECMO support in July 2018 to newborns, older infants, children and teens in need of cardiopulmonary support through the use of an ECMO machine, which can give the lungs and heart time to rest and heal.
ECMO is used when a patient’s heart and/or lungs are too sick to continue supporting the patient’s life and all other treatments that could help the heart and/or lungs work better have been tried.
The most common conditions that may lead to the need for ECMO treatment include acute respiratory distress syndrome, cardiac arrest, cardiomyopathy, congenital diaphragmatic hernia, low cardiac output syndrome, meconium aspiration syndrome, myocarditis, neonatal sepsis, persistent pulmonary hypertension, pneumonias and severe asthma.
BMSCH is one of only two sites in New Jersey to have a pediatric ECMO program. The technology has already assisted two critically ill children, providing life-saving care for the hospital’s youngest patients.
“This expansion of patient care is such an important step in providing tertiary care for the sickest of the sick,” a RWJBarnbas Health press release states regarding BMSCH’s ECMO program. “ECMO is a specialized cardiopulmonary bypass system. The ECMO pump adds oxygen and removes carbon dioxide from the blood just like our lungs do.”
Born with a complex cardiac defect, Marisa Tufaro survived six open-heart surgeries. Despite being hospitalized for more than two years and maintaining hundreds of doctor’s appointments, Marisa lived a vibrant life that inspired. An honor roll student who participated in multiple extracurricular activities, Marisa would have been a sophomore this year at Edison High School.
“We are deeply grateful to the Tufaros for their generous support of our ECMO program,” says Shaheen Timmapuri, MD, Surgical Director of the ECMO Program at BMSCH and Assistant Professor of Surgery, Division of Pediatric Surgery, Department of Surgery at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. “At BMSCH, we strive to give children and families access to the finest pediatric care in our state and region. Donations from generous individuals like Cyndi and Greg Tufaro provide us with the critical resources we need to give our young patients and families new hope.”
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About Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital
Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH) New Brunswick, an RWJBarnabas Health Facility, is a 600-bed academic medical center that serves as the principal teaching hospital of Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and the flagship Cancer Hospital of Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey. Its Centers of Excellence include cardiovascular care from minimally invasive heart surgery to transplantation, cancer care, stroke care, neuroscience, orthopedics, bariatric surgery and women’s and children’s care including The Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (www.bmsch.org). A Level 1 Trauma Center and the first designated Pediatric Trauma Center in the state, RWJUH’s New Brunswick campus serves as a national resource in its ground-breaking approaches to emergency preparedness.
RWJUH has been ranked among the best hospitals in America by U.S. News & World Report seven times and has been selected by the publication as a high performing hospital in numerous specialties. The Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital has been ranked among the best hospitals in America by U.S. News & World Report five times. In addition, RWJUH was named among the best places to work in health care by Modern Healthcare magazine and received the Equity Care of Award as Top Hospital for Healthcare Diversity and Inclusion from the American Hospital Association. RWJUH Brunswick has earned significant national recognition for clinical quality and patient safety, including the prestigious Magnet® Award for Nursing Excellence and “Most Wired” designation by Hospitals and Health Networks Magazine. The American College of Surgeons’ Commission on Cancer has rated RWJUH New Brunswick among the nation’s best comprehensive cancer centers.