Izzy Harwood-Lucas, from Harrietsham, Kent, loves the martial arts and even practices kickboxing.
But all of that is under question unless she can soon get surgery to remedy a triple curve in her spine.
Watch to learn more of her story below!
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Video credit: Rumble
She was diagnosed with severe scoliosis over the summer with three bends in her spine. Her parents only found out when they were out walking the dog and noticed that 11-year-old Izzy’s back was hunched.
The lumbar curve was masking the middle curve so the condition was not spotted earlier. This has bent Izzy’s spine over 40 degrees.
Izzy’s dad James Harwood-Lucas said: “When we got home we saw there was a lump.
“We got lucky, our GP used to be a spinal doctor and was able to diagnose it straight away.
“It’s quite rare because kids who develop scoliosis only normally get one curve but she’s got three.
“We’re a tight family and we’ve really pulled together, it came as a complete shock to hear your daughter needs surgery that could affect her quality of life.
“Her mum and I would do anything to help her.”
As much as possible, Izzy is avoiding fusion surgery because aside from stunting her growth, it would force her to stop kickboxing.
James said: “Kickboxing is a really important part of her identity. It makes her personality.
“Everybody knows her as ‘Izzy who does kickboxing.’
“She’s been doing it since was three. We took her there just for a bit of discipline but she ended up loving it.”
A pioneering operation called Vertebral Tethering Surgery is giving Izzy hope that she can continue kickboxing. If the operation succeeds, it can dramatically reduce the severity of Izzy’s spinal curves.
James, a firefighter, added: “We don’t want her to have the fusion surgery unless it is the last resort.
“For many people, unfortunately, it’s the only option. But luckily for Izzy, for now, it’s not.”
Adding to the pressure is that Izzy only has until March to come up with cash because her coming growth spurt could make the surgery impossible.
The lofty sum set the family aback but after managing to raise some money thanks to a crowdfunding campaign, they’re starting to feel more confident.
James, a London Fire Brigade officer, said: “I shared the campaign on the internal email system at work and it went out to fire stations across London.
“We have received donations from people who I have never even met.
“We are overwhelmed by people’s generosity. We’ve even had a magician offering to perform for free at one of our fundraising events.”
At the moment, Izzy for eight hours each day she needs to wear a restrictive body-molded brace to prevent her condition from deteriorating. They will increase the duration to 23 hours a day until she gets operated on.
James said: “She is coping well, but has good and bad days since she has had to start wearing the brace. She finds it uncomfortable and it causes her aches and pains.”
Lizzy was supposed to have a competitive fight last year but it was scrapped when they couldn’t find an opponent.
James said: “They couldn’t find a competitor. Hopefully, she can have this operation and can fight a few months after that.
If you would like to help, you can visit the family’s Just Giving page: www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/isabelleharwood-lucas
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