A WOMAN from Bewdley has celebrated ten years with a new spine by running the Birmingham Half Marathon to raise funds for the hospital which gave her the life-saving treatment.
Grace Winterburn, 21, along with her family raised an impressive £7,500 for the Royal Orthopaedic Hospital (ROH) in Northfield, Birmingham.
Grace’s spine before and after the treatment. s
A decade ago, at the age of just 11, Grace, who had severe scoliosis, had spinal fusion surgery.
Scoliosis is a condition where the spine is curved, limiting breathing, heart function and digestion.
The 12-hour procedure left Grace with two titanium rods and 23 screws in her spine.
Despite having this metalwork in her spine, Grace is proving that people with scoliosis can lead full and active lives and proved that when she took on the Birmingham Half Marathon.
Grace said: “On the starting line I felt so nervous. I wanted to make sure I just absorbed it all.
“There were so many people on the starting line who felt the same but for me, this was kind of my victory lap, celebrating what my body can do.
“I just want other people who have scoliosis to know that you are strong and you can do hard things.”
The funds raised will be split between both the paediatric outpatient care and spinal services at the ROH – both departments directly supported Grace as a child. Elaine
Bunn, the fundraising officer at the Royal Orthopaedic Charity, added: “We’ll be working directly with the teams to make sure Grace’s donation is invested in the areas she cares most about.
“Grace will be involved every step of the way.”
Visit: rohcharity.org/gracescoliosis/ for more on Grace’s story.
