08/21/2025
Repost from NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital featuring Dr. Rosenblatt and the amazing multidisciplinary care team from Weill Cornell Medicine, Columbia & NYP
When Ashley Merchant was four months pregnant, she and her husband, Mark, learned their baby boy, whom they would name Finnley, had a life-threatening mass, known as a lymphatic malformation, growing in his neck and throat, obstructing his airway.
Determined to save Finnley and avoidght complications that could endanger Ashley, the Merchants turned to 's Dr. Julianne Lauring, a maternal-fetal medicine specialist, and Dr. Steven Rosenblatt, an otolaryngologist who specializes in pediatric head and neck surgery, at of Children's Hospital of New York. "It was one of the most complex cases that l've seen," said Dr.
Rosenblatt.
In order for Finnley to breathe after birth, the multidisciplinary care team performed an EXIT procedure (ex utero intrapartum treatment) when Ashley was 35 weeks pregnant. The rare procedure required doctors to perform a C-section and first deliver only Finnley's head, neck, and shoulders, which allowed him to still receive oxygen from the placenta. While Dr.
Lauring held Finnley in her hands, Dr.
Rosenblatt successfully secured his airway before completing the delivery. "New York-Presbyterian is uniquely positioned for a case like this. We have experts in our fields all working together," said Dr. Lauring. "The opportunity to tell Ashley the baby's here and alive felt so good!"
After his birth, Finnley needed a series of treatments, called sclerotherapy, to shrink the lymphatic malformation, which extended across his neck, armpit, throat, pressing against his airway. Dr. Bradley Pua, chief of interventional radiology at , specializes in the treatment!
Instead of surgically removing the mass, he used a catheter to withdraw the fluid and injected a medication to prevent it from growing back. At six months, Finnley was strong enough to go home.
Today, Finnley is healthy and meeting started developmental milestones. "No matter whate dure. challenges are presented to this team of amazing doctors, they do whatever it takes to find the right care for Finnley," said Ashley.
