Staying Healthy Parents News Now Stem Cells Help 2-Year-Old Get New Windpipe By Holly Lebowitz Rossi Published on May 2, 2013 Share Tweet Pin Email A 2-year-old girl who was born without a windpipe has a new chance at life, thanks to a new windpipe made from the girl's own stem cells. PEOPLE.com has the story: Hannah Warren has been unable to breathe, eat, drink or swallow on her own since she was born in South Korea in 2010. Until the operation at a central Illinois hospital, she had spent her entire life in a hospital in Seoul. Doctors there told her parents there was no hope and they expected her to die.The stem cells came from Hannah's bone marrow, extracted with a special needle inserted into her hip bone. They were seeded in a lab onto a plastic scaffold, where it took less than a week for them to multiply and create a new windpipe.About the size of a 3-inch tube of penne pasta, it was implanted April 9 in a nine-hour procedure.Early signs indicate the windpipe is working, Hannah's doctors announced Tuesday, although she is still on a ventilator. They believe she will eventually be able to live at home and lead a normal life."We feel like she's reborn," said Hannah's father, Darryl Warren. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit