I’m Cerys and I had my Ravich procedure with Joel Dunning and his team in James Cook University Hospital, Middlesbrough, May 23rd 2024. 

At 15, I was diagnosed with Pectus Excavatum, just after Covid. I was confused and scared as I knew barely anything about the condition at the time. My mum and I had to fight for this surgery as I was rejected by multiple doctors and specialists telling me to “get over it” and that it wouldn’t get any worse. 

As you can see on the scan photos, my chest was very crooked, I had a Haller index of 5.4. My trachea was deviated and my sternum was on its side, squashing my heart and lungs. I was told I have the lung capacity of a 90 year old woman which stopped me from doing all the activities I previously enjoyed. It also stopped me working as I got out of breath just sitting up. 

I was in constant pain and lost contact with people who didn’t understand my condition and who thought I was just being “lazy” or “difficult” when in reality, I was struggling with all this as a teenager.  I was so scared of the thought of having to live with the condition because it  had already ruined my life. I saw all my friends going out and I couldn’t join them because even a day at school would exhaust me. I also had multiple UTI’s and kidney infections and lost a lot of weight due to struggles with eating and drinking. Everything just made me gag and felt like it was stuck in my food pipe. 

I’m still so disgusted that this surgery isn’t freely available on the NHS and that people have to either fight for treatment or live with it. For those with severe conditions, your quality of life is completely ruined and simple tasks become so strenuous. Having this operation has truly turned my life around. Although I was very achy and sensitive for a while, I felt so positive about my future straight away. I’ll be able to get back to doing what I love and being myself again. 

I’m now a few months post op and I have gone back to work. In my first month of recovery, I was able to go on holiday, see some London shows and even go to a concert. It was tiring but I felt so relieved and excited that I could finally live my life how I should as a young woman. 

I am grateful to the few doctors that listened.  I thank Joel Dunning and his team, the nurses at James Cook and especially my mum for constantly fighting my corner. 

I am also an artist and I would like to create more to spread awareness. My nan also made me the cushion to travel home with and the Pectus penguin with his very own Pectus, which Joel loved.