New hope for terminally ill baby A newborn babies foot is examined at the intensive care unit of the Marie Curie children's hospital, ...

New hope for terminally ill baby

A newborn babies foot is examined at the intensive care unit of the Marie Curie children's hospital, on March 24, 2012, in Bucharest, Romania. Dr. Catalin Cirstoveanu is fighting an exhausting and largely solitary battle against a culture of corruption and indifference toward patient welfare that's deeply embedded in Romania.Last year, some 2,800 Romanian doctors _ discouraged by the antiquated and corrupt health system and low wages _left to work in Western Europe, according to the Council of Medics.(AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

Baby Andrei, eight months old, son of Roma underage parents, cries after being put back in an incubator at the intensive care unit of the Marie Curie children's hospital, on March 27, 2012, in Bucharest, Romania. Andrei, who, against all odds, survived for eight months with almost no intestines, needs a transplant that costs hundreds of thousands dollars and can only be performed in the United States at his age.(AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

Baby Andrei, eight-month-old, son of Roma underage parents clenches his fist from the arms of a nurse in the intensive care unit of the Marie Curie children's hospital, on March 27, 2012, in Bucharest, Romania. Andrei, who, against all odds, survived for eight months with almost no intestines, needs a transplant that costs hundreds of thousands dollars and can only be performed in the United States at his age. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

Doctor Catalin Cirstoveanu, left, with backpack, watches as a newborn baby is transported to an ambulance on his way to Italy for heart surgery from the intensive care unit of the Marie Curie children's hospital, on March 22, 2012, in Bucharest, Romania. Cirstoveanu is fighting an exhausting and largely solitary battle against a culture of corruption and indifference toward patient welfare that's deeply embedded in Romania.Last year, some 2,800 Romanian doctors _ discouraged by the antiquated and corrupt health system and low wages _left to work in Western Europe, according to the Council of Medics.(AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

A temporary passport is seen on an incubator before the newborn baby inside was flown to Italy for heart surgery from the intensive care unit of the Marie Curie children's hospital, on March 22, 2012, in Bucharest, Romania. Cirstoveanu is fighting an exhausting and largely solitary battle against a culture of corruption and indifference toward patient welfare that's deeply embedded in Romania.Last year, some 2,800 Romanian doctors _ discouraged by the antiquated and corrupt health system and low wages _left to work in Western Europe, according to the Council of Medics.(AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

Newborn babies are fed at the intensive care unit of the Marie Curie children's hospital, on March 18, 2012, in Bucharest, Romania. Dr. Catalin Cirstoveanu is fighting an exhausting and largely solitary battle against a culture of corruption and indifference toward patient welfare that's deeply embedded in Romania. Last year, some 2,800 Romanian doctors _ discouraged by the antiquated and corrupt health system and low wages _left to work in Western Europe, according to the Council of Medics.(AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

Baby Andrei has confounded doctors just by being alive: The tiny boy with twig-thin limbs was given just days to live when he was born with almost no intestines — eight months ago. But one doctor is fighting a battle to save the lives of hundreds of sick children, and giving hope to baby Andrei and others like him. Dr. Catalin Cirstoveanu's work is being highlighted as a beacon of light in the struggling and corrupt infrastructure of the Romanian health care system.