Elias Soto celebrates 5th birthday, years after being diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy [Video]

LOS ANGELES (KABC) — An Ontario boy and his family have a lot to celebrate on his 5th birthday. When Elias Soto was born, doctors discovered a hereditary heart defect that his father had no idea he had. Doctors are calling it a ticking time bomb.

Shortly after Elias’ birth, doctors heard a heart murmur that revealed a shocking diagnosis, not only for him but for his dad, Rafael Soto.

“If it wasn’t for him being born, I would have never found out I had this heart condition,” Soto said.

The condition is called hypertrophic cardiomyopathy or HCM. It’s the number one cause of sudden cardiac death in people under the age of 35.

“This is something You might hear about in the news where someone is playing a basketball game or a football game and falls over suddenly,” said Dr. Jennifer Su, Co-Director of the Cardiogenomics Program at CHLA’S Heart Institute.

She says HCM is an …