A HAMPSHIRE transplant said today that it was "surreal and emotional" to come face to face with her old heart when she visited an exhibition where the organ is being displayed.

Jennifer Sutton, from Ringwood, said her first reaction was "yuk" when she viewed the organ that nearly killed her.

But her repulsion quickly gave way to fascination when she visited the Wellcome Collection in central London where her old heart is on display.

"It was slightly surreal but amazing at the same time to see the object that had caused me so much pain and anguish," she said.

The 23-year-old underwent an operation to replace her heart earlier this year after developing the condition restrictive cardiomyopathy in her teens.

Following the operation at Papworth Hospital, Cambridge, she gave her heart to the Wellcome Collection to be included in the first exhibition in the new £30m public venue.

Her heart is now being displayed as part of the temporary exhibition that explores the medical and cultural significance of the human organ.

"I was really curious and excited to see it but at the same time I am trying to love the heart I have now," she said.

"I have lost my feelings for the old one, it doesn't matter to me any more.

"It's weird to think I am stood here alive and that was part of me once upon a time."

Miss Sutton began to notice she was becoming progressively unwell when she was about 18 years old while studying for a degree in Animal Science at Sparsholt College, Winchester.

When she started having palpitations the decision was made to place her on the transfer list.

A suitable donor was found within two months and the operation took place on June 4.

Miss Sutton said she had no hesitation in agreeing to lend her heart to the exhibition because she wants to help raise public awareness about organ donation and the disease that could have ended her life.

On average heart patients wait 103 days for a suitable organ to become available. However for some that is too long. Last year 28 patients died while listed for a heart transplant.

"I will be eternally indebted to my donor's family. If it wasn't for them I wouldn't be here now," she said.

"I was really lucky to be transplanted so quickly but there are people who I met at Papworth who are still waiting and some people get to the point where they are too sick to undergo the operation."

The exhibition, which is open to the public until September 16, brings together contemporary and historic artefacts to look at how human understanding of the heart has changed over time.