A Northumberland woman is back in hospital after suffering complications linked to the first part of what she hopes will be a life-saving operation.
Melanie Hartshorn suffers from Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS), which causes her skull to dislocate from her neck and spine. The 33-year-old, who lives in Cramlington, struggles to sit up and has spent the majority of her life lying down.
Melanie underwent the first part of a major operation to fuse her neck and spine in October this year. The surgery, which is not available on the NHS, took place in Barcelona, Spain.
Only the first part of the surgery, which was carried out through her throat, was able to take place as Melanie's body was not strong enough. She needs to undergo the second part of the operation at a later date.
After spending four-and-a-half weeks in intensive care, and additional time on a ward, Melanie was able to leave hospital. However she is now being treated again after suffering allergic reactions to her tube feed.
Melanie has had to have intravenous nutrition via a drip into the central line of her heart (TPN). She said: "I’ve had a nasal feeding tube for medications only and the central line for IV nutrition and fluids as I went over a week with no nutrition at all.
"I'd love my throat to heal so I can eat. I'm starving now after three weeks of no food. We are still stuck in hospital with me on intravenous nutrition until the hole in my throat heals.
"Obviously this costs a lot and I’ve had to have several scopes done to look at my throat and monitor the hole.
"Once it’s healed properly, I can start trying to eat soft blended food again and have the tubes removed - so I’ll be able to return to the apartment until the last surgery in January."
Melanie initially planned to travel to the UK for the festive season before returning to Barcelona for the second surgery in January next year. However medics discovered she had a tear in her oesophagus.
She now has to wear a brace 24 hours a day and spend all of her time lying flat in bed, until the fusions are stabilised during the next surgery.
She said: "The date has not been set yet as I need to be fully recovered and strong enough for the surgery. They need to break my sternum to access the right area. But the plan is to arrange it for after Christmas in January.
"Obviously the sooner the better for me as all the instability and dislocating causes nerve damage and puts huge pressure in the fusion surgery I’ve just had, risking damaging it. Not to mention the fact I’m losing more muscle and getting weaker from the prolonged time stuck bedbound.
"So the sooner we can get me stable and moving after the fusion the better!"
Melanie previously had her neck and spine fused during a major operation in Barcelona in 2017. However four broken titanium screws in her vertebrae have caused the fusions to be unstable.
For the last 18 months, she has been kept alive by a surgical halo vest. Her neck and spine had become dangerously unstable and the halo was keeping them in place.
Melanie, who was suffering from seizures, vomiting and pain, said the halo was only a short-term fix and said she needed to raise £100,000 for the operation to fuse her neck to her spine.
She raised more than £84,000 on her Gofundme page and a "very kind person" offered her a loan as a last resort to ensure the surgery went ahead at the beginning of October.
Following the first part of the surgery, Melanie was placed into an induced coma on the intensive care unit (ICU). She recovered from surgery for four-and-a-half weeks, had her halo removed and left hospital.
Melanie's fundraising total on her Gofundme page has had to be increased to £150,000 due to the cost of additional medical care. Any money donated will be used to pay for Melanie's second surgery, the cost of her extended stay in ICU and additional treatment. It will also cover the cost of her stay in Barcelona and pay back loans.
Melanie, who has raised £106,110 so far, said all donations are "massively appreciated". She added: "Costs are mounting and the stress is building. Hospital admissions are costly, as is the TPN itself, but there’s simply no other option at the moment!"
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