Home » News » She had to have her leg amputated, but she didn’t give up on being a ballerina.

She had to have her leg amputated, but she didn’t give up on being a ballerina.

American Gabi Shull was only 9 years old when she found out she had serious bone cancer. The shock was enormous and the diagnosis was not at all encouraging: she would have to have her right leg amputated. The girl was already practicing ballet at the time, and she despaired at the thought that she would never be able to dance again. But thanks to an innovative surgery, Gabi didn’t have to abandon that dream.

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Tomorrow is the first day of September, which is childhood cancer awareness month. 5 years ago I fought cancer and survived, but many kids do not. Even though I lost my leg and there are many side effects to this day, I did not lose my life, and would consider myself very lucky. Sometimes kids will run out of treatment options, or even die because of the chemo itself since it is so toxic. This is because of the lack of funding and awareness for childhood cancer. The national cancer institute has billions of dollars for cancer research, but less than 4% of that money is set aside for childhood cancer research. 4% is not enough, and this needs to change. Awareness leads to funding. Funding leads to research, and research leads to a cure. So, lets show support for ALL kids battling cancer!! #gogold 🎗

A post shared by Gabi Shull (@gabishull) on Aug 31, 2016 at 7:29pm PDT

The girl’s tumor was located in her knee and she was able to resort to a procedure called rotational plasty. Her leg was amputated above the knee and the lower part of the limb was reattached to the thigh, in an inverted position. So her foot now functions as a knee, with the help of a special prosthesis for amputees of this type.

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It’s easier to understand by watching this video. Even though she explains it in English, the images perfectly show what the result of rotational plasty looks like:

“After I had my leg amputated, the priority was to walk again and get out of the hospital bed. But what motivated me to walk was the thought of dancing again, because I just wanted to dance.”

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Like any child who is faced with such an experience, Gabi had a very difficult time in recovery. And she wasn’t sure she’d ever make it back to ballet. “About 12 rotational plasty surgeries are performed each year in the United States. This is not a common procedure,” said the girl’s mother, Debbie Shull. But, according to her, among all possible operations, this was the one with the greatest chance that the girl would regain mobility.

After a year of recovery and a lot of training, Gabi was finally able to take the first steps on her own. Today, at the age of 14, the girl is a dancer and cheerleader, in addition to being a spokesperson for the NGO The Truth 365, an institution focused on fighting childhood cancer. And as is very clear from her Instagram posts, she lives like any teenager her age. Which also includes having plans for the future.

“When I’m older, I would like to major in pediatrics in college or work as a nurse or scientist to help find a cure for cancer. If I can beat cancer, live with a prosthetic leg and learn all over again, then I believe I can do anything.” We have no doubt, you beautiful!

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