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Ziyan Liu, a 19-year-old sophomore at Johns Hopkins University, has transformed her challenging medical journey as a young heart transplant patient at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford into an inspiring novel, with the support of Make-A-Wish® Greater Bay Area. She was diagnosed with an unbalanced atrioventricular (AV) canal—a congenital heart defect—and her book, Heartbreaker, Heartbroken, chronicles her difficult path to recovery and her outlook on life.
Ziyan’s health journey began at Packard Children’s in 2015, when at age 9 she was listed for a heart transplant. Her situation became critical in December 2016, leading to emergency surgery to receive a ventricular assist device (LVAD), due to her heart functioning with only one ventricle.
“The hardest part of my health condition wasn’t the physical pain, but the emotional burden of not feeling ‘whole’ or ‘normal,’” said Ziyan.
A fictional leap
While awaiting a heart transplant, Ziyan spent several months at the Ronald McDonald House at Stanford, regularly attending the Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital School Program. Her life shifted positively with a successful heart transplant in July 2017.
Ziyan was referred to Make-A-Wish Greater Bay Area to receive a wish and, after careful reflection, wished to become an author. The Make-A-Wish team connected her with a writing mentor, editors, an illustrator, and layout experts to help bring her vision to the printed page. Her wish was a multi-year, skill-building experience resulting in a 280-page novel printed through Amazon publishing.
The book draws from people and experiences that influenced her at Packard Children’s. Encouraged by her passion for reading, Ziyan narrates her real-world health experiences, including emotional and mental challenges, offering support and comfort to others. She explores themes of loneliness and the struggle for “normalcy,” aiming to show young patients facing similar challenges that they are not alone.
“I’ve always dreamed of holding a book where readers could escape, and relate,” said Ziyan.
Ziyan’s wish celebration was held at Lucile Packard in December 2025, where she was able to sign her book and take pictures with the team that inspired her novel.
Characters who heal
Heartbreaker, Heartbroken features characters inspired by real-life Stanford Medicine Children’s Health care team members, including teachers from the hospital school like Kathy Ho and Robert Siu, who, according to Ziyan, provided “unwavering support and education.”
The character June draws from former Child Life Specialist Jeanie Liang (now Sophie’s Place Broadcast Studio coordinator), who educated 9-year old Ziyan about her diagnosis and treatments. In the book, Ziyan reflects on Liang’s comforting presence, which made her feel at ease. “Her simple acts, like coloring with me, helped me feel less alone.”
“When Ziyan told me that she included a few of us in her book, I felt incredibly honored,” said Liang. “To be a part of a patient’s medical journey is a sacred thing, and to be invited into this intimate part of her life, I am humbled by it. It’s a privilege few people outside of the hospital get to experience.”
Like many writers, Ziyan faced challenges in writing, including conveying the emotional depth of her experiences and battling self-doubt, yet her determination created a narrative filled with authenticity and hope.
“This book will be invaluable to those with similar conditions, providing a powerful sense of community,” said Liang. “Identifying with someone who’s been on a similar path is impactful, and only someone who has experienced a similar path can truly communicate that.”
Through her book, Ziyan conveys that “strength and hope can lead to thriving amid overwhelming hurdles. I wanted to capture the emptiness and loneliness I felt, but also offer readers hope.” She intends to gift copies to hospitals nationwide, allowing both patients and medical professionals the chance to explore its pages.
A future worth thriving for
Focused on her studies in molecular and cellular biology and psychology, Ziyan aims to enter pediatric cardiology after graduation from Johns Hopkins University. Her firsthand encounter with compassionate care at Packard Children’s fuels her aspiration to become a physician-scientist, and hopefully one day to walk the halls of Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford as a pediatric cardiologist. “The doctors and staff at Packard Children’s didn’t just save my life, they taught me to appreciate life and admire medicine’s potential,” Ziyan said.
Nine years post-transplant, Ziyan continues to thrive, living with gratitude and purpose. Her journey has instilled lessons on meaningful living for herself and her donor, honoring dreams unrealized.
“Above all, my experiences have taught me how to live instead of just being alive, and today, I see myself as living for two: my younger self, to heal all the hurt that she went through, and my donor, to achieve all the dreams that they were never able to achieve,” said Ziyan.
Authors
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- Elizabeth Valente
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