When Andrea Calvaneso and her husband, Joe, were expecting their fourth child, they imagined a routine delivery and the joyful chaos of a growing family. But a rare and life-threatening complication turned their journey into a dramatic fight for Calvaneso’s life and required a massive blood transfusion. 

“The doctors told me that mothers in cases like this may need three or four units of blood,” Calvaneso said. “I received my body’s worth of blood twice over. Miraculously, my body accepted every unit, and I didn’t suffer any residual effects from the transfusion.” 

Calvaneso, a West Bloomfield resident, was meeting with her doctor during a routine prenatal visit in September 2022 when she learned devastating news. She had the most severe form of placenta accreta, a rare condition in which the placenta grows too deeply into the uterine wall. At the time, doctors believed the placenta had penetrated her uterine wall and was pressing directly onto her bladder. There was a high chance that Calvaneso would hemorrhage and require a blood transfusion during delivery. 

On Jan. 11, 2023, Calvaneso underwent a scheduled C-section at a hospital with a large blood bank that receives blood products from the American Red Cross. Her son, Nico, was born healthy, but doctors immediately saw that the situation was far worse than they had anticipated. The placenta hadn’t just been pressing on her bladder – it had embedded itself into the back of the bladder, cervix and pelvic wall. 

As doctors worked to remove the placenta, Calvaneso began to hemorrhage uncontrollably. They used a REBOA device – short for Resuscitative Endovascular Balloon Occlusion of the Aorta – to control the bleeding. Prior to Calvaneso’s C-section, four units of blood that friends had donated through the Red Cross were set aside for her, but it was not enough. Even with advanced intervention, Calvaneso required a massive blood transfusion: more than 50 units of blood, including 27 units of red blood cells.

The surgery lasted nine hours, but even then, doctors had to pause the procedure due to the sheer volume of blood she had received. Calvaneso woke up in the ICU, intubated, with her surgical incision still open. It wasn’t until the following day that doctors were able to complete the final steps of the operation.

Calvaneso said her doctors told her that she would not have made it through the surgery without the blood transfusions she received.

“I am really grateful to the hospital and every single person who touched my case that day, but really the people who should not be forgotten are all the people who donated blood,” Calvaneso said.  “I’ll never know who they are, but I’m forever grateful for their generosity. It enabled me to be a mother to my four children.” 

Now, Calvaneso is passionate about raising awareness about the importance of blood donation. She carries a determination to share her story and honor the unknown heroes who gave her a second chance at life. 

By Sydney Henry, regional communications manager