Finley was diagnosed with a left sided congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) He was given a 50% survival rate when they discovered this at our 20week scan.

Finley was born in Liverpool Women’s Hospital on the 31st Jan 2023 where we had a huge team from the neonatal unit in the room to help him, as soon as he was born he was intubated so they could get him straight onto oxygen they took him down the neonatal unit (NICU) and settled him in, here they stabilized him for a few days, then we had to wait for space to become available at alder hay, he was finally transferred to alder hay by connect northwest ambulance service where he then had to stabilise for a few more days. At 2 weeks old Finley had a major surgery where they repaired the whole in the Diaphragm by placing a patch on it and using some of his muscle tissue to strengthen the repair. After this he started to amaze the surgeon team as his lung that was crushed before the repair bounced back straight away, where in other cases they normally slowly inflate back to normal size. Once he started to recover he was taken off the oxygen and moved to a ward were I could stay with him, he was then tube fed until he was ready to be bottle fed, once he gained weight and they where happy with him he eventually came home on the 17th February. 3 years later he is a strong little boy that runs around like nothing ever happened. Finley will continue to have yearly check ups with his surgeon and at some point will need a re-peat surgery as the patch will get too small as he grows.

Want to join me in making a difference? I’m raising money to benefit CDH UK, and any donation will help make an impact. Thanks in advance for your contribution to this cause that means so much to me.

More information about CDH UK: CDH UK is leading the way in supporting families and helping to improve outcomes for the often fatal condition Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia (CDH), that affects Babies, children and adults. By education and research we are making a difference and need you to help us to continue with our work. Help us to keep breathing life into supporting families and medical professionals affected by this devastating condition. Find out more www.cdhuk.org.uk