A TEENAGER who was only expected to live until Christmas is doing “miraculously” well after a lung transplant gave her a second chance.

Jessica Paddock, 14, was at the final stage of cystic fibrosis and her family feared the worst.

She was the Journal’s Young Person of the Year at our Local Hero Awards on Sunday, and had already picked a frock.

But on Thursday the call came her family had hardly dared hope for – a potential organ donor match had been found.

She was rushed to Great Ormond Street Hospital with her father Andy and mother Cheryl and had the life-changing operation in the afternoon.

The Winterbourne Earls teenager came out of theatre late that night and is now making remarkable progress in the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit at the children’s hospital in London.

Since the operation, Jessica is now breathing without oxygen supply for the first time in four years and is able to “be a teenager”.

Relieved mother-of-three Cheryl says she feared the phone call last week could have been another false alarm, but her daughter has now been given a second chance.

“Jess still cannot believe it,” she said.

“She keeps asking if it’s a dream, and if so, can someone wake her up.

She still doesn’t want to think ahead in case something goes wrong. Without the operation she would have probably lived until Christmas.

“But now, she can be a teenager and do all the things she wants to do without being breathless.

“When she came out of theatre they said happy birthday to her because she has been given a second chance in life.

“Jess is sore and tired but keeps repeating I can breathe! She really is doing miraculously well and her first words after the operation were, ‘thank you my hero donor’.

“You’re never quite sure if the operation is going to be a success – we thought we had the go ahead in June when we received two phone calls saying Jess could have the operation, but her antibodies were too much of a mismatch with the donors.”

Jessica’s heart rate has now dropped from 160 beats per minute to about 99.

She is expected to leave ICU by the end of the week, when she will move to another ward for three weeks before returning home.

Despite being wheelchair bound for the past two years and her condition worsening, Jessica has become a young ambassador for organ donation.

She became heavily involved with the charity Live Life Give Life, and her bravery and charity work were recognised on Sunday at the Salisbury Journal and Spire FM Local Hero Awards.

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Grandfather Ian Brooks and Jessica’s former schoolteacher picked up the award on her behalf.

Cheryl added: “Jess wants to dedicate the award to the donor and her family.

“Jess is a normal girl and she is so selfless.

“To get an award like this goes to show you do make a difference and Jess always said one day my call will come, and it did.”

Once Jess has made a full recovery, she wants to go cycling and swimming at Center Parcs.