Travis Marcus is the first child in the world to receive a heart transplant

Organ transplant

Organ transplantation is the moving of an organ from one body to another or from a donor site on the patient's own body, for the purpose of replacing the recipient's damaged or absent organ. The emerging field of regenerative medicine is allowing scientists and engineers to create organs to be...

  after the implementation of the DeBakey miniature heart pump, invented by 96-yr.-old cardiac surgeon, Michael DeBakey. Travis received the heart pump at Arkansas Children's Hospital

Arkansas Children's Hospital

The Arkansas Children's Hospital is a pediatric hospital in Little Rock, Arkansas. It is the only pediatric Level I trauma center in Arkansas and the sixth largest in the United States, serving children from birth to age twenty-one...

 in September 2004. The device enabled him to stay alive until a donor heart became available. In November, a heart was found in Houston, Texas

Houston, Texas

Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...

 and Travis's doctor, Dr. Jonathan Drummond-Webb

Jonathan Drummond-Webb

Jonathan Drummond-Webb was a South African pediatric heart surgeon.He gained national attention by way of a TV series produced by ABC NEWS called "ICU: Arkansas Children's Hospital" , which showcased complicated operations during the summer of 2002...

, personally flew there to harvest the organ himself. Travis received his new heart on November 11, 2004. He was determined to make it home in time for Christmas

Christmas

Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...

and so he did. He left the hospital on Thursday, December 23, 2004.