A Life - Saving Reunion
After graduating from Mercer in 1985, close friends Leonor Ortiz Childers and Gowthami Arepally hoped to cross paths again despite the foreseen demands of their ambitious, professional careers. Neither could have imagined that their reconnection — more than 20 years later — would have such life-and-death significance.
In 2008, the two were reunited at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C., where Ortiz Childers was being treated for breast cancer and blood complications, and Dr. Arepally serves as associate professor of medicine within the division of hematology.
Dr. Arepally led a team of Duke hematologists that devised a successful treatment plan for Ortiz Childers, who was suffering from the counteracting threats of blood clotting and uncontrolled bleeding following a cesarean section and the birth of her second set of twins.
Beyond this, Dr. Arepally has been a source of constant support and guidance for Ortiz Childers when, suddenly and shockingly, her health spiraled further downward late in 2008 after her heart failed, and Duke doctors conducted emergency surgery to implant an experimental heart pump to save her life.
Nearly a year and a half after the implant, Ortiz Childers’ health is stable. The heart pump, one of the most advanced in a line of miniature left-ventricle assist devices (LVADs), is designed to keep her alive indefinitely. Powerful batteries around her waist give her the mobility to walk and keep pace with her four young children.
“After losing touch with each other for all those years, it’s truly amazing how our lives have become so intertwined at such a crisis point in my life,” says Ortiz Childers. “Beyond the fact that Gowthami is part of the team of doctors that saved my life is the fact that we have such a close personal bond that I believe has been integral to my recovery.”
Dr. Arepally smiles when she says it has been a blessing for both that they reconnected under such dire and fateful circumstances.
“Having such a good friend during your college years is very special, but when you add how Leonor and I have reconnected through this experience, it really affects you to your core,” she says.
The two first met in calculus class during the first fall quarter of their freshman year at Mercer. Since they were both science students, they traveled in the same circle of friends. As time progressed, their love of science, the late nights studying and the tightly knit academic and social environment at Mercer brought them even closer.
“Some of my best memories surrounded the camaraderie we had, even though we were both competing for the best grades,” recalls Dr. Arepally, who graduated magna cum laude with degrees in physics and chemistry.
“I was in such awe of Gowthami, because she was such an excellent student across such a broad range of coursework, in chemistry, physics, biology and math as well as history and English,” says Ortiz Childers. “It was incredible to see someone so brilliant in so many areas.”
Ortiz Childers was making her mark as well, both academically and athletically. She served as a Mercer Ambassador, was a member of student government and starred on the women’s tennis team, playing in the No. 1 spot for four years, all while earning her degree in physics.
After graduating, the two friends initially kept in touch regularly and would visit each other occasionally. However, the fast pace of life, frequent moves to different areas of the country, and the rigors of their budding careers hindered regular communication and they eventually lost track of each other.
Following medical school at Vanderbilt University, Dr. Arepally moved to Atlanta, where she fulfilled her residency in internal medicine at Emory University Hospitals. She then gained a fellowship in hematology and oncology at the University of Pennsylvania. In 2001, she joined the medical staff at Duke.
Being a physician comes naturally for Dr. Arepally. Both her parents are medical doctors, as are her siblings (both her sister and brother attended Mercer) and husband. She has two children.
Ortiz Childers moved to Durham shortly after graduation and received her master’s degree in environmental sciences at the University of North Carolina School of Public Health. After a stint at a private research company in the area’s Research Triangle Park and working several years at the Environmental Protection Agency, her career path took a dramatic turn.
In 1997, she entered law school at UNC-Chapel Hill.
“My interest in the law was sparked by my volunteer work at a local courthouse,” Ortiz Childers says. “I was fascinated by it.”
After graduating from law school in 2000, she opened a solo practice as a trial lawyer, representing primarily the Hispanic community. The analytical skills she gained as a scientist and her fluency in Spanish served her well.
“The minute I opened my practice, I was swamped,” she says. “I loved it. I felt like I was making a real contribution to people’s lives, particularly those who were underprivileged and not previously well represented.”
Ortiz Childers practiced law for seven full years until she decided to focus entirely on her children: a set of twins born in 2006. Two years later, while pregnant with a second set of twins, doctors discovered late-stage breast cancer.
She underwent a mastectomy during her first trimester. The green light for chemotherapy was given during her second trimester.
“There was so much uncertainty during that period, much of which involved finding a way to continue the pregnancy and give birth to healthy babies while treating my cancer,” she says. “Through the great work of the doctors at Duke and my faith in God, I was able to give birth to healthy twins in the summer of 2008.”
About the time she first learned she had breast cancer, Ortiz Childers discovered, by glancing through Duke’s hospital directory, that Dr. Arepally was on staff at Duke.
“It was such a wonderful surprise to hear her voice that first day in my office,” Dr. Arepally says. “I wanted her to know that I would be there for her, and that I wanted to do everything I could to facilitate her care.”
It wasn’t until Dr. Arepally was conducting rounds at Duke months afterward that she became directly involved in Ortiz Childers’ healthcare. Dr. Arepally was formally requested to consult on a blood-clotting problem that Ortiz Childers was experiencing. She helped implement a treatment plan that reduced the risk of a fatal blood clot while allowing proper healing of her cesarean section incision.
For several months afterward, Ortiz Childers progressed well. There were no signs of the dire situation that would suddenly endanger her life.
As the summer turned to fall, a combination of factors — the cancer and the effects of chemotherapy and radiation treatment, the pregnancy with twins and a cesarean section — converged to cause Ortiz Childers’ heart to fail.
In a matter of hours, Duke received special permission from the FDA to implant the experimental device into Ortiz Childers. It was truly a life-or-death moment.
After she reaches the five-year mark since her initial cancer treatment, which is 2012, Ortiz Childers will become eligible for a heart transplant. Until then, she is living each day at a time.
“I’m so grateful for so many reasons that things have progressed as they have,” Dr. Arepally confides. “I’m so glad I’ve been able to be there for Leonor. It’s not only made me a better friend, it’s made me a better physician.”
For Ortiz Childers, her long-time friend’s vigilance, compassion and devotion have provided continual encouragement and comfort. “To have had this trusted friend and advocate there for me throughout all these extremely difficult times has been invaluable. You simply can’t put a price on a friendship like ours.”