A four-year-old girl asked her mum why she was different to the other children at her school.
Jade Teare’s daughter Lotty has a condition called Pectus Carinatum - otherwise known as ‘pigeon chest’.
It is caused by the sternum being pushed out by an overgrowth of cartilage - causing the chest to point out and if not treated, it has been known cause heart and lung issues, reports Lincolnshire Live.
And the 27-year-old mum-of-two. from Gainsborough, admits it is heartbreaking seeing her child say she is not like the other kids her age.
“She was probably about two when I first noticed. I didn’t really know anything about it,” Jade said.
"When she started pre-school she noticed and she asked 'why have I got a point chest and the other kids haven’t?'
“She has got speech delay as well and doesn’t like speaking in front of people because of that.
"Then to have her thinking she is even more different to the other kids because of her chest – it’s upsetting.
"She is really aware because of the other kids. She does ask why she has a pointy chest."
Initially, the mum-of-two was told there was nothing wrong with her little girl.
However, she decided to do some research of her own and got a second opinion from a specialist in Oxford, where she was told the condition can be cured with a corrective brace.
Results can be seen from anything from six months to a couple of years - and the mum has been reassured after speaking to other parents who have had the treatment for the same condition as Lotty’s.
Unfortunately, for the family the cost of the procedure isn’t available on the NHS, leading to the mum launching an appeal to help raise the money needed.
The mum said: “She [Lotty] is asking when she is going to get her superhero brace."
"I want to do it so she is the same as the other kids and doesn’t have to be self-conscious and feel different to the other children,” the mum, who works as a teaching assistant, she added.
"It will grow as she gets older and we don’t know how big it will get.”
A GoFundMe has been set up to raise the £1,500 needed for the brace and the £200 for the appointment.
More information about how you can donate can be found here.
