Everyone meet William (Will) Carter, his wife Madison (Maddie) Carter, Lincoln Carter (the oldest brother), and wild man Levi Carter (the youngest). Below I will introduce you to Lucas Carter (the one we pray is the toughest).

In August 2023, Will and Maddie were so excited to announce that Maddie was pregnant with their third child. This was the perfect piece to their family puzzle. Later they found out the gender of course and decided that Lucas was the perfect name completing their family made up of Lincoln, Levi, and Lucas.

In December, Lucas was diagnosed with a moderate diaphragmatic hernia, as well as complex heart defects. The hernia causes his lungs to have difficulty developing due to other organs (stomach, liver, bowel) pushing them out of the way. The heart defects cause his heart to not filter blood properly, however, there is more to the heart defect than that that we will not know fully until after he is born. Below is a more detailed description of what the Carter’s journey looks like.

This heart defect is a double outlet right ventricle, a hole between chambers in the heart and a small aortic arch. After he’s born, he’ll immediately have a breathing tube and catheter placed while he’s evaluated on the severity of both the CDH and heart. He could potentially be placed on ECMO, which is essentially life support to help his heart and lungs work properly (this is worst case scenario that we are praying does not have to happen).

The CDH surgery will happen as soon as he is stable enough to handle surgery, which could be a matter of days or weeks depending on how strong and stable he is. If he needs ECMO, this could delay that surgery. The heart surgery will come after the CDH surgery. We aren’t sure whether this will be one or multiple surgeries. All of that will be determined based on an echo he will have done following birth.

The doctors predicted anywhere from 2-6 months in the nicu at MUSC, but said that it is truly hard to predict because it is hard to tell the severity of his heart condition through fetal scans. They also aren’t sure how the CDH and heart defects will work together after he is born.

Overall, the doctors have been optimistic but Lucas has a very long and unpredictable journey ahead.

Will and Maddie are going to MUSC April 14th. Maddie will be induced and Lucas’ journey will begin.

Will and Maddie are potentially looking at being out of work for an undetermined amount of time. Not to mention being away from Lincoln and Levi on top of the medical expenses. This will be a tough time for all not only mentally but also financially. I am asking that if you have anything extra you please donate it so that it may at least ease some stress and worry.

We are placing our full hope and faith in the Lord, praying that he will heal Lucas and we can watch Lucas grow up with his two older brothers. We are also realizing that God’s will is not always ours, so we are praying for peace and joy in whatever this journey brings.