York County girl lost her twin to heart defects. Now 9, she faces 3rd open-heart surgery

Nothing scares Brittany Winters more than the word surgery. At the age of 9, she's already had 10 medical procedures – two of them open-heart surgeries. 

Now, she is preparing to face her third open-heart surgery in the spring of 2019. 

“I’m nervous because I haven’t had one in a while, and I forget what it feels like,” Brittany said. “I really just want to get it over with. I really don’t want to have a lot of surgeries.”

Brittany is a fourth-grader at Indian Rock Elementary school. She enjoys playing soccer, reading and hanging out with her emotional support dog, Beau.

She has three siblings, Codi, Brooke and Alamay.

Her twin, Alyssa, died from cardiac defects a month after being born.

Brittany was born on July 2, 2009 in the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Her parents found out about the twins' congenital heart defects around 24 weeks into the pregnancy. 

“When they were first born, we thought she was going to be fine,” said her mother, Alexis Winters. “They didn’t see anything that she was going to need surgically done. They thought just follow up as needed.”

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But the family soon learned that was not the case. At 6 months old, Brittany’s heart murmur started to get louder and she was referred to a cardiologist.

During that time, the Wintereses were also coping with the loss of Alyssa.

“If it wasn’t for her (Brittany) I don’t know where I would be,” Alexis said. “I had to be strong for her. She was going through things at the same time.”

The Winterses soon learned that a subaortic membrane was growing below Brittany’s aortic valve, causing a blockage in her blood flow. They also learned there was a possibility that the membrane could stop growing. But the membrane continued growing, and at 18 months, Brittany underwent her first surgery at the Penn State Hershey Children's Hospital.

“The first surgery was real easy,” said her father Chad. “We stayed at the Ronald McDonald House. She went in on Friday, and by Monday we were done.”

Two and a half years later, Brittany found herself needing surgery again because the membrane was growing. By now, she was 4 years old, and the couple had a younger child, Brooke.

Once again, they traveled to Hershey for her surgery, but it wasn’t as easy as the first time.

“We were up there almost a month,” Chad said. “We stayed at the Ronald McDonald House up there, but there’s really nothing for (Codi and Brooke) to do. You try to keep it normal for them.”

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They tried to keep their travels to a minimum, only coming back home to Spring Garden Township when necessary. The two said it was hard, but they’ve always found a great support system with their friends and family.

After Brittany’s second surgery, a friend of Alexis’ held a Zumba-thon to help the family get back on their feet.

Now, Brittany will face her third open heart surgery because the membrane has grown back. Alexis said that in most cases children who suffer from this condition have their first surgery around this age. 

Brittany is also suffering from a significant leakage in her aortic valve, something common with her condition. Because of this, her parents know it won't be the last of her surgeries. 

"It could be as soon as two years," Alexis said. "She’s very small for her age, so they want to wait as long as they can to fix it."

Now, having a better understanding of what's happening, Brittany has become more concerned about her health problems. “She asks a lot more questions,” Alexis said. "The last time she had surgery, she was 4, so she had no idea what to expect, what was going on. Now she knows.”

To cope with her anxiety, Brittany has been seeing a therapist twice a month. Alexis said Brittany has learned different ways to show her emotions and express her worries.

But regardless of her health condition, friends and family of Brittany say she always has a positive outlook at life. 

"She’s a very happy little girl," Alexis said. "I always hear from people that they can’t believe everything she’s been through because she’s always smiling."

Brittany also plays soccer for the York Youth Soccer League.

“Soccer is the first thing she got out to get physical with,” Chad said. “She does get less exercise than other kids, so when she gets into it she does tire up.”

The family tries to spend as much time together as possible. In their free time, they like to stay home and play board games, watch TV and just be in the presence of one another. 

Alexis and Chad said they know what to expect, but they can never be fully prepared. 

Having gone through the process before, Brittany also expresses concerns.

“She lost a sister and she worries," Alexis said. "That’s horrible to think about.”

The Winterses will schedule a date for the surgery in January 2019, and it will likely take place sometime in the spring of 2019.

The family has created a GoFundMe page to collect donations for Brittany’s surgery.

A Gift Card Bingo will be held on Jan. 20, 2019 at the Alert Fire Company. Doors will open at 12:30 p.m., tickets are $10 in advance and $15 at the door.

Also of interest, a gallery of photos below: