A BRAVE boy with a brand new heart says he feels like the Hulk after a successful, but terrifying, nine-hour transplant surgery.

Louis Hanley has never known what it feels like to have a properly working heart, after battling congenital heart disease since birth.

But the 10-year-old has come through a gruelling heart transplant operation.

The youngster, from Bo’ness, near Falkirk, underwent surgery at the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle last Thursday after being flown by ambulance plane when a heart became available.

Later that day, the transplant was carried out and continued into the early hours of Friday.

Louis is now recovering in an isolation unit.

His mother Nadege, 46, said: “It’s been tough and Louis was very, very scared.

“Now the surgery is over it’s difficult to know what he’s feeling because he’s never had a proper working heart. But the other day he told me he felt like the Hulk.

“It’s very early days, but we are being told the transplant was a success.”

Louis was born with congenital heart disease called Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome, meaning the left part of the heart is very small and doesn’t work.

At just five days old he had open heart surgery.

Nadege added: “He has been very lucky to get a quick transplant and we thank the Glasgow team who were looking after us the past three weeks.”