ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — A Bradenton teen is recovering at Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital in St. Petersburg after doctors amputated her left leg.
Jasmine Ramirez underwent a 17-hour-long surgery. Her left leg weighed 174 pounds.
Watch report from Julie Salomone
Her father and sister spoke to Tampa Bay 28 outside the hospital.
"My dad always told Jasmine if it came down to your life or your leg, we would choose your life so they took the chance and thankfully and thank God that it went well, you know, 17 hours, we were all worried sick, waiting in the waiting room," said her older sister Anastashia Carrasquillo.
An infection was threatening the teen's life.
She has suffered from a rare condition nearly her entire life. Doctors told her the condition is so rare there's no official name for it.
Doctors currently classify it as a lymphomatous tumor.
"Her legs were pretty normal up until she turned around two years old. My parents started realizing that her left leg was kind of growing a bit more larger than the other," said Carrasquillo.
"We had to tailor and alter clothes for her because obviously her one leg is about, you know, five times smaller than the other one...shoes, we had to get two different pairs of shoes," recalled Carrasquillo.
The 14-year-old shares her story on a Facebook page called "Jasmine's Journey."
Jasmine will spend the next few months in the hospital.
She took her first steps about eight hours after surgery. Eventually, she'd like to get a prosthetic leg.
"She's still dealing with, you know, coming to terms that she only has one leg now," said her sister.
"She's still the same sweet, humorous girl that we knew before and she's getting back there and she's doing a lot better because she's like starting to walk.She's starting to eat, trying to drink water and everything. She loves sweet tea right now so she's been asking for sweet tea."
Hundreds have donated money to a GoFundMe page to help Jasmine pay for her ongoing medical care.
Her family said they're grateful for everyone's assistance and prayers.
They hope her story encourages others to have compassion for others because not everyone fights a battle you can see.
"We just want people to know how strong Jasmine is and how courageous and how kind she is, you know. She’s a sweet girl...she didn’t deserve this. No kid ever deserves this, but she has challenges and she has pushed through and we want people to know the story of her strength and her courageousness and we also want her story to get out there," said Carrasquillo.
Share Your Story with Julie
From the courtroom to your commute, Julie Salomone works to share the issues that matter to you. She also focuses on the day-to-day issues in Sarasota County, so be sure to reach out to Julie to start a conversation.
.
Tampa Bay mother grieves the loss of her oldest son, who died in a DUI crash
Police said the 19-year-old who was on a motorcycle was struck and killed by an impaired driver.
