UK-first heart implant keeps rugby dream alive

Lillie Yale, a 14-year-old from Warrington, has become the first person in the UK to receive a dissolvable heart implant called Memosorb to close a hole in her heart approximately the size of a 10p piece. The biodegradable device, fitted by surgeons at Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust in Liverpool in June, will act as a scaffold for her heart to heal itself before fully dissolving without leaving any trace. Unlike a traditional permanent metal implant, this pioneering procedure allows Lillie to continue pursuing her dream of becoming a professional rugby player.