Overcoming the odds: Born premature, baby at UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh in need of a liver

His eyes light up when you say his name.

He smiles when he’s being held, when visitors talk to him, and definitely when his family members kiss his forehead.

Chance William Kacin Halloran is 15.2 pounds of one happy infant — despite his challenging arrival into this world.

“There were several times we thought he might not make it,” said Eileen Halloran, his grandmother, a Greenfield native who lives in Carrick. “He is a pretty cool baby. He’s been through a lot, but we all love him. He is so worth it. I want to share his journey because I believe he has survived all this for a reason.”

On March 20, 2021, Kasee Lynn Kacin, who grew up in Vandergrift, delivered a baby boy at UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital in Oakland. A placental abruption, when the placenta separates from the inner wall of the uterus before birth, caused delivery at 23.5 weeks, 109 days before his due date of July 7.

He weighed 1 pound 12 ounces.

Chance spent a week at Magee. He was transferred to UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh in Lawrenceville for treatment of a suspected intestinal obstruction.

He’s fought to live from the minute he was born, his grandmother said.

Chance celebrated his first birthday in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit — where he has spent every day of his life.

Halloran and her wife, Sandy (who the grandchildren call “Mimi”) and Chance’s father, Cameron Halloran from Carrick, visit daily.

They hosted his party with cake and balloons and presents.

The theme was “Where the Wild Things Are,” inspired by the children’s book.

Chance at times has had to be fed by total parenteral nutrition, a method of feeding that bypasses the gastrointestinal tract. It can cause damage to the liver. He has been recommended by the transplant team at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh to be eligible to receive an organ donation.

On April 14, he underwent testing so he can be placed on the United Network for Organ Sharing list.

There is a site to sign up here to be a living donor for Chance W. Kacin. There are specific requirements.

Chance has already had five surgeries.

He can’t talk – “he squeaks,” his grandmother said.

He needs a ventilator to breathe and is fed through a tube.

Chance lost his mom.

On Oct. 31, Kacin, 28, died of an overdose.

“Kasee was a mother, sister, daughter and friend, who was hilarious, and fearless and warm and resilient,” Eileen Halloran said. “She fought a heroic battle with addiction. She had been sober for a long time, but her disease still had a powerful hold on her. Kasee became her children’s angel.”

Kacin’s aunt Dakota Cochran of Vandergrift said her niece was strong every day for baby Chance.

“She never had a weak moment being by his side in the hospital,” Cochran said. “Chance’s ability to be strong comes from her. She loved her son, and she did try to be everything she needed to be for her son. She is now his guardian angel and will forever be by his side.”

Beating the odds

Despite the challenges, baby Chance is beating the odds.

His medical condition is complicated, said Dr. Carey A. Welsh, assistant professor of pediatrics, medical director, Neonatal Transport Services, director of Newborn Medicine Advanced Practice Providers for UPMC Children’s.

“We have an entire team taking care of him,” said Welsh, who attended Chance’s birthday party. “We have the privilege to care for him. He is absolutely a fighter. He has dealt with everything so well.”

Chance is currently the longest Neonatal Intensive Care Unit resident at UPMC Children’s.

The plan is for him to leave the hospital and live with his grandmother and her wife because he needs two people with him at all times. His care will also require the assistance of medical professionals trained in children with a trach.

Halloran said that Chance is insured with UPMC Medical Assistance for Children with Disabilities program. While family hasn’t received any billing related to his health care as of yet, the future expenses are still unknown.

Chance most likely will spend time in The Children’s Home of Pittsburgh & Lemieux Family Center in Bloomfield. It’s a place where family members can learn additional care.

Caring team

Halloran, who didn’t see Chance in person until June because of covid-19 restrictions, said the nurses and doctors and hospital staff are compassionate and kind.

Chance is her fourth grandchild and first grandson.

“These folks have family at home, but despite the pandemic come in and take care of our family members working 12-hour shifts with such great care for these little ones,” Eileen Halloran said. “It is simply amazing what they all do. They all work together amazingly as a fantastic team as well.”

It’s definitely a team, agreed Alexandra Mastro, physician assistant and lead advanced practice provider in the Neonatology Fellowship Program of the Newborn Medicine Division at UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital and UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh.

“It is a pleasure to care for Chance,” she said. “He is such an inspiring little boy. We can all learn the lesson of perseverance from him. I can only imagine how difficult things have been for Cameron since Kasee had died last year. I know he has relied on his moms and the family has really banded together even stronger and they have really embraced the love from the NICU family.”

Mastro said she and members of the staff cried when Kacin died.

“We were all there in the wake of that devastating loss and we cried with the family and for Chance that his mother had passed while he is such a young, sick person,” Mastro said. “I think that the family has done everything possible to stay strong and rely on one another.”

She said when they care for a child in the NICU, they care for the entire family.

“They are an inspiration,” Mastro said. “I feel like I have really connected with his family.”

Critically ill

Mastro recalled sitting for hours talking with Chance’s parents, especially one night last summer. He got critically ill and they thought he wasn’t going to make it through the night.

Eileen Halloran recalled that evening.

Doctors were discussing a do not resuscitate order.

“It was the worst day that nobody ever prepares themselves for, to hear this news about an infant child,” Eileen Halloran said.

She and her wife left the room to give Chance’s parents time alone with their baby.

“We walked down the hallway to a waiting area that has floor to ceiling glass windows, and overlooks the city,” she said.

A storm was rolling in.

“You could see the lightning strikes over top of the city skyscrapers,” she said. “Chance’s parents called and asked us to come sit with Chance, as they were going to take a walk and talk. As we proceeded back to the baby’s hospital room, we heard the loudest rumble of thunder I have ever heard in my life, followed by the brightest strike of lightning close to the building.

The lightning literally lit up Chance’s entire hospital room.

In less than an hour after the lightning’s strike, Baby Chance started to recover throughout the day.

They nicknamed him “Chance Lightning.”

Father and son bond

“Chance battling through his wild roller coaster of his short life has inspired me a lot,” Cameron Halleron said. “The fact that Chance has the willpower to fight through more health issues than most adults have ever faced gives me the strength to keep on positively pushing myself forward.”

“It was so great to be at his first birthday party,” Mastro said. “He is so adorable. The wild things theme fits him because he does some pretty wild things. Being part of his journey is so rewarding. He has definitely defied the odds. We will give him every possible chance to survive, no pun intended.”

“Chance is a fan favorite in the NICU,” Mastro said. “He is a miraculous little person.”

The medical team loves seeing Chance thrive and grow, said Welsh.

“He has challenges and is not ready to go home yet,” she said.

Cameron Halloran said honoring Kacin’s memory and watching his son overcome so much is his inspiration. He said the best memory he has is seeing tiny little Chance smile at his Mommy and him for the first time.

“The hardest day is when Chance and I lost Kasee in our lives,” he said. “Chance smiles at me and squirms around in his crib like he wants to be held by me every time I walk into his room. He is the happiest baby everyday despite all he has fought through with his health challenges. He is so full of love just like his mother was.”