FOREST RANCH — A little girl diagnosed with a condition that has a big name is facing a liver transplant hopefully within the next few weeks, and her family could use some financial help with the costs.

Morgan Passalacqua, 2 1/2 years, has been diagnosed with progressive familial intrahepatic cholestasis type 1, a liver condition that she has had since she was born.

Morgan is the daughter of Stacey and Bill Passalacqua of Forest Ranch, and the family was told this week by her doctor at Stanford Medical Center that the operation could be as close as a couple of weeks.

“I’m so happy that my baby will get some relief,” wrote Stacey Passalacqua in an e-mail to the Enterprise-Record on Tuesday. Morgan’s mother is a Chico native and is a registered nurse working in Enloe Medical Center’s quality department.

Morgan’s father is a retired sheriff from Sonoma County and is a security consultant.

Morgan has been listed on the United Network for Organ Sharing and has been waiting for a donor. although she was born looking “pink” and healthy, by the time she was three months old, her skin had turned very yellow and her parents had to rush her to UC Davis for testing.

At the time, she was diagnosed with small bile ducts in her liver and started on medications to help with her symptoms. One of her severe symptoms, caused by the back up of bile into her system, is puritis or itching.

Her mother reports that Morgan’s itching causes her to scratch herself until she bleeds. Because of it, she requires 24-hour care to keep from hurting herself. She has been treated at Lucille Packard Children’s Hospital for two years.

Progressive familial intrahepatic cholestasis type 1 means that patients cannot properly move the bile from their liver cells. that condition leads to liver damage, and eventually to liver transplant. it causes other problems, including slowed growth. Morgan, at 21 pounds, is about the size of an 18-month-old child. her favorite thing is Tinkerbell and “everything is pink,” her mother said.

Although Stacey Passalacqua’s insurance will cover some of Morgan’s treatment, a transplant can cost more than $1 million and there are years of other medical bills as well as the chance that Morgan’s body may reject the new liver.

A Morgan Passalacqua fund has been set up through Wells Fargo Bank, and donations may be made out to Morgan Passalacqua and sent to P.O. Box 1744, Chico, CA 95927.

Laurie Kavenaugh can be reached at 896-7765 or lifestyle@chicoer.com.