Minimally Invasive Mitral Valve Surgery Gave Mrs. Claus a New Life

“Thank you for fixing our Grammie.” 

That’s the note 71-year-old Cheri Robinson’s grandchildren made for Craig Hampton, MD, FACS, a board certified cardiothoracic surgeon at St. Joseph Medical Center (SJMC) in Tacoma. After Robinson underwent a successful minimally invasive mitral valve surgery in November 2023, she brought the handwritten note with her to a follow-up appointment with Dr. Hampton. 

A year later, she’s bringing a tradition of hers to the hospital and care team who saved her life. 

Every year, Robinson and her husband dress up as Mr. and Mrs. Claus to help spread joy around the holidays. They have been doing it for nearly a decade.

“It’s so much fun,” she said. “Kids look at us with wonder in their eyes. I give them boxes of candy, and I make sure to pass along their letters and wish lists to Santa.”

This year, Robinson and her husband made a special trip to SJMC to show their gratitude to the medical team that helped fix her heart. Adorned in their jolliest garb, they hand-delivered cookies and filled the hospital halls with cheer. 

Robinson says not a day goes by that she doesn’t think of Dr. Hampton and the care she received at SJMC.

“I think of him every day,” said Robinson. 

Her symptoms started with shortness of breath. Robinson was in Hawaii on a family trip when she first noticed something wasn’t quite right. She was walking up a hill, huffing and puffing by the time she reached the top. “Am I getting old?” she joked with her husband. She couldn’t catch her breath, an alarming contrast for someone who loves to travel and be active. 

Her symptoms progressively worsened over the course of a couple of months, and eventually she visited the emergency department, suffering from unrelated stomach pain. During the visit, her care team made an unexpected discovery when taking her vitals: Atrial fibrillation or “AFib.” 

Atrial fibrillation (AFib) is an arrhythmia, or an irregular heartbeat. The condition occurs when your heart's upper chambers quiver rapidly and in an uneven pattern. AFib can raise your risk of stroke, heart failure, or other arrhythmias. 

“Walking across the room made me feel out of breath,” said Robinson. “It felt like I had run a marathon. I would just gasp for breaths,” she said.

It started to impact nearly every aspect of her life. 

Things she loved to do carried extra weight, quite literally. When she traveled, her husband would have to carry a chair around with them in case Robinson got winded and needed to sit down. Traveling through Italy, that chair was a constant companion and burden. 

For months, she visited her primary care doctor and they ran test after test. Everything came back normal. Her oxygen levels were shockingly okay, despite the pressure in her chest and shortness of breath. She started medication to control the AFib, but something was still amiss. 

She had undergone numerous tests, but the root cause of her shortness of breath went undiagnosed until she got an appointment with Thomas Templin, MD, a thoracic surgeon at SJMC. Robinson went to the appointment for a hernia, but after speaking with Dr. Templin, they had come up with a plan for her heart.  

“It’s clearly your heart,” he told her.

“We care for people, not just their disease,” said Dr. Templin. “Our goal is always to get them back to quality of life. When someone comes to see me, I ask myself, ‘if this was my family, where would I send them?'”

Dr. Templin, who specializes in cardiothoracic surgery, told her she was in good hands and referred her to his colleague, Dr. Hampton, an expert who specializes in minimally invasive mitral valve surgery at SJMC. 

Tara Tohovaka, a patient navigator for the Mitral Valve Program, recalls the first time she met Robinson. 

“She had a lot of life to live,” said Tohokava, “but her quality of life was really going downhill.”

That’s one of the most rewarding parts of Tohokava’s job, because as soon as Robinson walked into the clinic, Tohokava knew she was in the best possible hands–surrounded by an expert care team that would get her life back on track.

“I get to use my experience as a nurse to advocate for our patients,” said Tohovaka. “It’s rewarding. You get to hold a patient’s hand throughout their journey and help improve their lives. We care for people and have built a deep level of compassion and expertise. It’s unique to have a dedicated program like ours.” 

Within a week, Dr. Hampton and the team had an answer–and a treatment plan. 

“It’s your heart valve,” Robinson remembers Dr. Hampton telling her.

The fix was a minimally invasive heart surgery to replace her valve. Minimally invasive heart valve surgery allows the operation to be done through a small incision on the side of the chest, which allows patients a much easier recovery and a quicker return to full activities. 

Minimally invasive surgery is a technique performed by less than 10% of heart surgeons in the U.S. While most surgeons across the region perform only 3 to 5 mitral valve surgeries per year, Dr. Hampton performs nearly 100 each year, allowing him to see mitral valve patients nearly every day. 

“The goal is to get our patients back to life,” said Dr. Hampton. “The recovery is much less impactful of their life and activities. It’s a gamechanger, but it’s important to have someone perform the procedure who does a lot of them. Volumes and outcomes go hand-in-hand, and that’s a unique part of our practice.” 

Surgeons at SJMC have some of the best outcomes in the country. Earlier this year, SJMC received a prestigious three-star rating from the Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS), the highest rating possible in cardiac surgery for mitral valve repair and replacement, an honor they have been awarded for the last six years.

“We have assembled a great team focused on the best patient care possible,” said Dr. Hampton. “Our unique approach offers the highest quality of care anywhere in the country. When I say the care we provide is world-class, it’s not an overstatement.” 

“Dr. Hampton and the entire team treated us like family,” said Robinson. “They were so kind and empathetic. They made everything better. They gave me my life back.”

Today, Robinson is back to doing the things she loves. She recently traveled to Greece with her husband, and this time, she left the chair behind. 

“I feel so much better,” she said. “I can swim with my grandkids. I can garden. I can travel. I can do things again.”

She said the surgery was truly life-changing. 

“If I could tell Dr. Hampton something, I would tell him, ‘thank you for a new life,’” said Robinson.