This post was authored by Kathy Jenkins, MD, FACC, Chair of the Adult Congenital and Pediatric Cardiology Council.

In the news this week, Max Page, the seven year old boy who played “Little Darth Vader” in the popular car commercial that debuted at the 2011 Superbowl, underwent open-heart surgery to repair a congenital heart defect.  He underwent surgery to repair a hole in his heart and replace his pulmonary valve.

A few days before the surgery in an interview on The Today Show, Max’s mom “discussed Max’s fear of his upcoming surgery and described how his family has been helping him prepare for the procedure.” She shared how days before the surgery he said, “Mom I don’t have a choice. I have to go through it. I don’t like it and it’s still scary — but I have to. So I think I might as well go through it with a good attitude.”

Max is a brave little boy well beyond his years, but unfortunately Max’s situation is not unique. In fact, congenital heart disease (CHD) is our nation’s number one birth defect, and nearly 40,000 infants in the U.S. are born each year with CHDs. Fortunately as medical care treatments have advanced, children born with CHD are living longer and healthier lives, even into adulthood.

The latest issue of Cardiology magazine focuses on CHD and the successes we have seen along the continuum of care. Congenital heart disease requires lifelong care, and the College’s Adult Congenital Pediatric Cardiology (ACPC) Section has been working to ensure patients with congenital heart disease have continuous cardiovascular care throughout their lives. There are now more adults living with CHD than children.

In the cover story, Gerard Martin, MD, FACC notes how there is a need for collaboration among adult CHD specialists, general cardiologists and pediatric cardiologists to educate each other, along with patients, on how to manage care over the course of a patient’s life. Moving forward, the College is fortunate to have leading national patient advocacy groups such as the Adult Congenital Heart Association, Children’s Heart Foundation and Mended Little Hearts as involved partners in providing patient and physician resources.

I also discuss how the ACPC Section has evolved over the years, what we have accomplished thus far, and what our plans are moving forward to improve care for CHD patients. If you haven’t done so already, I urge you to flip through the latest issue and learn about what the ACPC Council is up to.

We should all take Max’s word of advice for kids who have CHD: “‘If you use your FORCE and dream big, you can achieve anything. We may be small — but we’re mighty!’”

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