A Welsh mum whose medical condition is so rare that only 600 people have it worldwide has thanked medical staff after she was rushed into hospital for an emergency caesarean. After suffering her first lung collapse as a teenager Donna Marie Parry experienced serious medical complications over the next 13 years with multiple hospital admissions from the age of 17.
But Donna didn't discover the cause of her medical issues until she became pregnant in 2020. Doctors discovered she had Birt-Hogg-Dubé Syndrome, or BHD Syndrome, a rare disorder which has only been reported in around 600 families worldwide. The disorder affects the skin and lungs and increases the risk of certain types of tumours.
Donna's rare condition meant that her pregnancy was classed as high-risk and it was overseen by Dr Aparna Gumma, maternal medicine specialist consultant at Ysbyty Gwynedd in Bangor. During the coronavirus pandemic, Donna had been deemed "even more high-risk" due to the virus, NorthWalesLive reports.
