Christopher Cooper of Marion was just two months old when he had his first eye surgery at University of Iowa Children’s Hospital in 2010.

Born with congenital cataracts in both eyes, Christopher needed the early surgeries to remove the cataracts and move toward a corrected vision. During a routine doctor’s visit three months after cataract surgery, doctors saw blood and scar tissue inside one eye. A second surgery with a vitreoretinal specialist was needed to repair the delicate structures and remove the matter, which otherwise would have left Christopher blind in that eye.