Shell girl awaits crucial surgeries

Two-year-old Hazel Goton of Shell has at least two major surgeries coming up. 

The daughter of Hayden and Davonne Goton, Hazel has a rare condition where the portal vein that transports toxins in the blood to her liver for detoxification is compromised.

 “We knew actually when I was pregnant with her, we knew she would be born with complications,” Davonne said. 

The concern in the womb was the ductus venosus, a temporary shunt vein that helps deliver blood from the umbilical cord to the fetus. Hazel never had one. The condition caused an enlarged heart, but Hazel was born without major complication. The Gotons knew, however, that they would have to keep an eye on her portal vein, which typically is connected to the ductus venosus while the fetus is in utero. 

A scan and liver biopsy revealed Hazel does, in fact, have a portal vein, but it is too small to show up in most scans. To compensate, her body created a shunt vein as a workaround. It will take two surgeries to close the shunt vein, with the hope that it will force enough blood flow through the portal vein without having to widen it. 

“There’s potential she might end up with more surgeries after that surgery, but for now I think their goal is closing that shunt vein and trying to get a functional portal vein to her liver,” Davonne said. 

The family will have to travel to Denver, Colo., to receive specialized care. An initial surgery set for Oct. 24 had to be rescheduled as the surgeon dealt with a family emergency, and as of last week the Gotons were awaiting an update. 

The Gotons previously applied for and received Ronald McDonald House Charities housing while in Denver but will still incur expenses related to their travel. With back-to-back surgeries that need to be scheduled a week apart, their house in Shell will also require caretaking while they are gone. 

Local artist Benjaporn Helburn hopes to help offset some of those expenses by raffling off her original oil painting “Eight Second Ride,” with all ticket sales to benefit Hazel. There is currently no set deadline for the drawing, with tickets available for purchase at Big Horn Federal Savings Bank in Greybull, or by calling Helburn at 307-763-3939 or Hazel’s grandmother Lesa Young at 307-272-5880. 

This will be the first fundraiser for the Gotons, with another coordinated by Shell Bar in the works. 

Davonne thanked the Shell community, including the Shell Church, which has helped them in the past.