Oxford surgeon performs life-changing surgery on girl, 10, from Sierra Leone onboard hospital ship

  • Report by ITV Meridian's Juliette Fletcher- Photos and video courtesy of Mercy Ships.

A young girl from Sierra Leone, who suffers from Blount's Disease has undergone life-changing surgery, led by an Oxford surgeon, to straighten her legs.

Fudia, whose condition meant her feet pointed inwards, was finding walking a struggle and she found friendships hard as a result.

But Fudia, 10, was operated on by paediatric orthopaedic surgeon Rachel Buckingham, from Oxford University Hospitals Trust, and is now standing straight and learning to walk again.

Fudia's mother and father both died and she was adopted by her uncle and aunt.

They searched for medical help for the little girl for years and were advised to wait for help from the charity Mercy Ships.

It provides free surgeries and medical training from its hospital ships and deploys to some of the poorest countries in the world, where people have little access to safe or affordable surgery.

10-year-old Fudia learns to walk again

Rachel Buckingham, who performed the four hour surgery, said: “I will never forget the first time I met Fudia. I could see she was struggling with the pain of her severely bowed legs.

"Every step was an agonising effort. Her legs were so severely twisted that walking was a daily battle.

"As a volunteer children’s orthopaedic surgeon with Mercy Ships, I’ve met many children who need urgent surgery, but something about Fudia’s quiet courage struck me deeply.

Despite the suffering she’s endured – losing her parents at a very young age, being turned away from hospitals that couldn’t help her – she held on to hope.”

  • Rachel Buckingham, Children's Orthopaedic

If left untreated Fudia may have lost her ability to walk, but her surgery was successful and she gained 14cm in height and grows stronger every day.

Fudia has returned to school with hopes for the future. “I want to be a doctor so that I can help other people,” she said.

“Fudia’s condition was severe, but treatable,” explains Rachel Buckingham.

“I’m so thankful we were able to provide the right surgery, and she can now walk, run and play happily.

Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know...