Parents: Alli Beth’s four-year fight for life ends with peace

The parents of a Corbin four-year-old who had battled the medical problems surrounding a birth defect for her entire life said their daughter touched thousands of lives before her death Saturday.
Alli Beth Thompson passed away at the University of Pittsburgh Children’s hospital Saturday afternoon following complications of a surgical procedure meant to correct problems from an intestinal transplant over two years ago.
“We were really running out of options of things we could do,” said Jeff Thompson, Alli Beth’s father. “We knew she was really running out of time. We just wanted to bring her home so that family and friends and support groups could spend some time with her.”
Alli Beth never got to visit again the home in Gray where she spent only a total of about six months during her four-year lifespan.
Her parents had few choices: continue unsuccessful treatment; stop treatment completely or allow doctors to remove her transplanted intestines so that she could build up strength for a time before another corrective surgery.
It was the third option the family chose, after lengthy consultations with doctors at the hospital 12 days ago.
Alli Beth was born Dec. 3, 2001with a relatively rare birth defect – her intestines formed on the outside of her body.
Jeff Thompson said survival rate for such defects is normally 97 percent, but that in Alli Beth’s case, mistakes were made during an initial procedure to correct that problem, shortly after her birth, which caused her health to go into a slow spiral.
“The surgeon came out and told us … and this is etched in our mind and will be forever … that she would look fine in a bikini when she was 18-years-old,” Thompson said. “I’ll never forget that. She just never got better.”
Alli Beth spent time in Central Baptist Hospital in Lexington, where she was born, the University of Kentucky Hospital, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, and the University of Pittsburgh Children’s Hospital where she had been since Oct. 8, 2005.
Only about 1,000 intestinal transplants have been performed worldwide with about 500 survivors. Alli Beth is one of only six children worldwide to have undergone her most recent procedure.
Amy Thompson, Alli Beth’s mother, has been with her daughter at numerous medical facilities almost since birth. She said Alli Beth was smart beyond her years about her medical condition, and was bright and vibrant on her occasional visits to her home. Often burdened by medical bags and tubes, Amy Thompson said her daughter tired of the constant medical treatments.
“She’d tell me, mommy … just take them out … just take them all out,” she said. “She knew what was going on. She knew what her situation was. We always prayed and we talked about God, but we never talked about dying. She was the smartest girl you’d ever meet. She made me the best mom I could possibly have ever been.”
Media coverage made Alli Beth’s case local phenomena and brought attention to her plight statewide. The family said thousands of people asked them about Alli Beth’s progress over the years, and hundreds more from all over the country tracked her recovery efforts via a website maintained by the family.
“She’s had a positive influence on every single person she’s met,” Jeff Thompson said. “The only thing we wanted for her was peace and comfort.”
Both Alli Beth’s parents were near her when she died. They say it was a pleasant and peaceful end to her troubled life.
“We are mourning ourselves. We are not mourning her,” Amy Thompson said. “We are grateful for what God has given us. We know that Alli’s not sick anymore. She had a one-way ticket. The only thing we can do now is live the best we can, witness to people like Alli witnessed to people and hope that one day we have no doubt that we will see her again.”
Corbin Funeral Home is handling arrangements for Alli Beth’s funeral. Parents say a visitation ceremony will be held today at Immanuel Baptist Church in Corbin, but no arrangements had been finalized as of press time.
She will be laid to rest in Resthaven Cemetery.