A Shropshire teenager has been given the gift of life after undergoing a heart transplant operation within days of mysteriously falling ill.

Zoe Croft, 16, of Myddle, near Wem, came down with what doctors thought was a virus or possibly asthma five weeks ago. But just days later Zoe, a pupil at Corbet School in Baschurch, was fighting for her life in a hospital bed after suffering heart failure.

Her illness then caused her heart to swell to three times its normal size.

After finding a suitable donor, Zoe has battled against the odds and has since come out of intensive care and is now recovering at Birmingham’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

Her parents Steven and Tracey said Zoe had been very lucky a heart was found in time. Civil engineer Mr Croft said: “If there hadn’t been a heart in this country they were going to look abroad.

“She was at the top of the priority list in the UK and suddenly a heart became available. It’s amazing she has pulled through because we’re still not sure what caused her heart to pack up.”

He said Zoe’s family, including brother Josh, 15, and sister Tessie, 21, had been keeping vigil at her bedside.

Mr Croft added: “Zoe had a virus about five weeks ago and went to the doctors but they just kept sending her back home.

“After that she wasn’t any better and had X-rays because she was losing her breath easily. Then she was admitted to the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital on May 6 with fluid on her lungs.

“The next thing we heard was it was touch and go whether she would make it and they took her to intensive care.

“Four days later she had a heart transplant in Birmingham, but now she’s on the mend and walking again.”

He said Zoe may never know who donated the organ which saved her life, but said she was hoping to meet their friends and relatives if possible because her story has been filmed for a BBC programme.

By Tom Johannsen