The family of a woman who was declared brain dead and kept alive so doctors could deliver her baby via C-section has issued an update.For those unfamiliar with the heartbreaking story, Adriana Smith, 31, from Atlanta, Georgia, was tragically pronounced brain dead after having a medical emergency last year.While pregnant, she started experiencing headaches around nine weeks in and went for medical advice,when she was reportedly given medication and sent home.However, her boyfriend heard her making gurgling sounds and struggling for breath, so rushed her to hospital, where a CT scan showed several blood clots in her brain.

Doctors confirmed that tragically, there was no chance of recovery and declared her brain dead. Adriana remained on a ventilator and was kept alive via machines.She was controversially kept alive by doctors who delivered her baby, a little boy called Chance, prematurely via C-section in June last year, before she was taken off life support, and her funeral was held later that month.This is because Georgia’s extremely controversial ‘heartbeat law’ prohibits the termination of any pregnancy after six weeks of gestation, following the 2022 overturn of Roe v. Wade.It means no abortion can be carried out if there is a ‘detectable human heartbeat’ except in the event of a ‘medical emergency or medically futile pregnancy’.Following her passing, Adriana’s mother, April Newkirk, launched a fundraiser titled ‘Help Adriana’s Family During This Heartbreaking Journey’.