A fragile 6-year-old girl suffers from a rare condition. Every bone in Zoe Lush's tiny body easily breaks and there is no cure for her genetic disease.
Mom Chelsea Lush said the wind can "literally break" her daughter because she's so delicate. She has what's called Osteogenesis Imperfecta, which affects some 20,000 to 50,000 individuals in the U.S., as per the Osteogenesis Imperfecta Foundation. It's also called OI or brittle bone disease.
Zoe already broke 100 bones before her first birthday. The doctors also determined through a 4-D ultrasound she suffered multiple fractures while in her mom's womb, New York Post reported.
Doctors thought Zoe won't live long after her birth but her parents were determined to raise her even in the most challenging conditions. The Lush family, who's based in California, always took extra care when Zoe was a baby even for simple tasks like changing her diapers, which became a three-person job.
Zoe also underwent operations when she was a little bit older so doctors could insert metal rods in her limbs and spine. These days, she's wearing a neck brace for extra support but Chelsea is hopeful this will be removed in no time.
#WishboneDay the awareness raising day for the Osteogenesis Imperfecta (OI) community is fast approaching on 6 May https://t.co/IgL8xeX3Uk pic.twitter.com/LU2vGXN8Ws
— Brittle Bone Society (@BrittleBoneUK) April 5, 2017
Zoe's condition, however, is life-long as there is no cure and no other way to reverse her weak bones. Her parents anticipate she will continue to break her bones even as an adult but they are doing what they can to minimize these instances.
Chelsea remains amazed at how Zoe pulls through every single day. She gets by with help from physical therapists, which lessened the chances of her bones breaking. Physical therapy somehow strengthened the muscles that protected her bones, as per Daily Mirror.
Doctors advised abortion for Chelsea when they found out her baby's condition. She was then a 20-year-old mother-to-be. Nearly seven years later, Chelsea said she and husband Curtis made the right call. "I would not change Zoe and I would never ever take anything back," Chelsea said.
