NEW HAVEN, Conn — A group of patients at Yale New Haven Children’s Hospital got the surprise of a lifetime on Wednesday when a professional race car driver paid them a visit.
Bryce Cornet, who last competed in the MX-5 Cup, was diagnosed at the age of 15 with a form of congenital heart disease called Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) syndrome. Now, he spends his time spreading messages of hope and awareness for others going through a similar journey.
“I always didn’t want people to know about my struggle. I saw it as a weakness,” Cornet said.
Although CHD is something people have since birth, it can be detected in early childhood. For Cornet, he was in geometry class in high school in 2010 when he suddenly started getting serious heart palpitations.
“I started to feel palpitations in my chest. I was extremely fearful of what was going on. Being so young, I thought I was having a heart attack,” Cornet said.
Later that day, Cornet was diagnosed. Then, for the next six months, he had to wear a heart monitor and go through two procedures. Since then, he hasn’t had any palpitations. However, as a racecar driver, he has to be careful.
“Having heart scans is part of my physical, something unique to me that many other drivers don’t have,” Cornet said.
Now, he embraces his journey and shares it with others.
On Tuesday afternoon, he spent time with hospital patients in the pediatrics unit at Yale New Haven Children’s Hospital, handing out stickers and telling his story.
The visit was all part of Cornet’s partnership with the JoeAbate Charitable Foundation, named after a Connecticut man who died from a congenital heart defect known as a Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD). Now, his wife and his family have created the nonprofit, raising money for the Pediatric Cardiac Intensive Care Unit at Yale New Haven Children’s Hospital.
CHD is a condition people are born with and one many can live with.
“Congenital heart disease is the most common birth defect. About one in 100 people is born with some form of heart disease,” said Dr. Robert Elder, a Pediatric Cardiologist at Yale New Haven Children’s Hospital.
Dr. Elder said CHD usually presents early in childhood, and there’s a huge spectrum of issues that can come with it. However, he said most people, about 90%, live to be adults and do very well.
This week, Dr. Elder is at CTHeart camp, where kids living with CHD interact with one another and share their individual journeys with one another.
On Wednesday night, Cornet visited the camp in Morris, rode the go-karts, and took part in the fireside chat. All with the same goal he always carries.
“Ensuring that children know that they’re not alone. A lot of it is even more personal things like having scars and being around others that have that same journey, that it’s not affecting their lives is the main mission,” Cornet said.
Julia LeBlanc is a reporter at FOX61 News. She can be reached at jleblanc@fox61.com Follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
---
Have a story idea or something on your mind you want to share? We want to hear from you! Email us at newstips@fox61.com
----
HERE ARE MORE WAYS TO GET FOX61 NEWS
Download the FOX61 News APP
iTunes: Click here to download
Google Play: Click here to download
Stream Live on ROKU: Add the channel from the ROKU store or by searching FOX61.
Steam Live on FIRE TV: Search ‘FOX61’ and click ‘Get’ to download.