A DEVOTED grandad has spoken of his relief and elation after his ‘Little Angel’ was given a new heart and a second chance at life.

Tony Marcangelo had no choice but to look on helplessly as his one-year-old grandaughter Carina lay in a hospital bed for almost five months in desperate need of a transplant to replace her damaged heart.

The scarcity of donor organs and the severity of her condition left Carina in a desperate race against the clock, with no guarantees that a heart could be found in time.

So it came as an overwhelming relief to Mr Marcangelo when Carina was taken from London’s Royal Brompton Hospital, where she had been waiting since October, to Great Ormond Street for her life-saving operation.

Although her nine-hour surgery was a success there were several complications that saw Carina in a critical-state and her family were warned they may lose her.

But she bravely battled through and after a period in intensive care, she was finally able to return home on Friday after 223 days in hospital.

Mr Marcangelo, age 63, has made countless trips from his home in Fernhill Heath to be by Carina’s bedside over the last few months.

“We were ecstatic when a heart was found for Carina,” he said. “We waited months and we were very aware that she did not have an endless amount of time.

“Hearts for children, especially babies, do not come around every two minutes. We will never know who the family are that donated but we are hugely thankful to them and our thoughts have been with them.”

Carina was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy, a disease which damages heart muscle, in July.

The condition saw her heart stop beating several times and in November she became the youngest child in the UK to be fitted with an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) device, which gives a shock if her heart goes into an abnormal rhythm.

The device is the same used to keep footballer Fabrice Muamba alive after he suffered a cardiac arrest on the pitch at White Hart Lane last year.

Although it would normally last someone for seven years, Carina’s ICD used up almost its entire battery charge in just a few months after it was fitted.

Having witnessed the scarcity of organ donors first-hand, Mr Marcangelo has been campaigning for more people to sign up. He also wants the government to create an “opt-out” organ donor system - where people are automatically on the register unless they ask to be withdrawn.

“When this happened to us it really hit home and it is not something that just goes away,” he said. “There will always be others out there who need the same help that Carina has been so lucky to have.

“You cannot force people to sign up but the more people that are aware the better.”

Meanwhile Mr Marcangelo is hoping Carina’s transplant means a much brighter future.

“There will always be certain restrictions but we hope she can enjoy a happy and healthy life.”

He paid tribute to Royal Brompton and Great Ormond Street for their support.

“Great Ormond Street has given her unbelievable care and if it was not for Royal Brompton she would not have been around to have her transplant,” he added.