Feel Good Friday!
Zenilda knew it wouldn’t be easy, but she knew it would be worth it.
14-year-old Zenilda’s scoliosis surgery has been successful!
Imagine young Zenilda’s excitement, her joy, at being able to live pain free. To stand tall. To see a future of her own making.
Zenilda’s scoliosis was so bad that it started to crush her from the inside out, putting pressure on her heart and lungs. Without appropriate surgery, Zenilda’s scoliosis would have eventually taken her life.
Since she first arriving on our shores, Zenilda has braved her way through so much. But Zenilda is as resilient as she is brave. COVID and her original treatment hospital changing its priorities resulted in lengthy, unexpected delays.
As you can imagine, this was hugely disappointing and stressful for Zenilda and her family.
We were thrilled that the Sydney Children's Hospital, Randwick, came on board last year as a partner in Zenilda’s surgical journey. But this excitement was short-lived as a routine pre-surgery scan that turned up a new hurdle in her journey -
A tumour on her spine.
She had been through so much already. This really felt unfair.
However, the tumour was successfully removed, and following surgery we found out that, thankfully, the tumour was benign. What a relief!
Finally, she was ready for the life-changing spinal surgeries!
At Sydney Children's Hospital, Randwick, a complex series of procedures over several months involved Zenilda being fitted with a halo brace to lengthen her spine, fusions and a final surgery for a supporting rod to give her the best outcome for her future life back in Timor.
It was touch and go for the last year. We are now thrilled we can report that the surgery was fully successful!
Thanks to kind and wonderful people, like you, who never gave up and supported Zenilda all the way. Every day is a feel-good day for Zenilda now!