Chantelle was just months away from paralysis when doctors finally diagnosed her split spine.
Chantelle Ross, 16, had a rare condition called Spondylolisthesis.
It meant the vertebrae at the base of her back had never joined together and a growth spurt triggered by puberty had caused them to separate completely. Only her spinal cord was holding them together.
Chantelle's doctors said that it was the most severe case they had ever seen.
The teenager had to have four gruelling operations to repair her back-using titanium rods, bones from her hips and marrow from other people.
Miss Ross was just months away from being permanently paralysed when an X Ray revealed the shocking truth.
Now she has told her story for the first time after years of surgery and physiotherapy have finally brought her back from the brink.
Chantelle was an active child who loved trampolining when, aged just 11, she began to suffer agonising back pain.
Soon even standing still hurt and walking a short distance would make her break out in a hot sweat.
Repeated medical examinations suggested there was nothing wrong, causing her parents Gordon and Agnes to doubt their own judgement.
It wasn't until December 2006 that Chantelle, from Glasgow, was given an all-important X-Ray.
Doctors at Monklands hospital in Lanarkshire were astonished when it revealed a split spine caused by a severe case of Spondylolisthesis.
Chantelle said: 'I couldn't believe it when I was told that I had a split spine. I'd never heard of anything like it before.
'I was terrified that I wouldn't be able to do the things that other teenagers take for granted.
'For a while before I was diagnosed I was struggling to even sit down, and I couldn't go to PE lessons or run around with my friends.
'The last few years have been pretty hellish but I've had fantastic care from doctors and my parents.
'It's been hard for me to keep up with my schoolwork and it's been tough being in hospital for weeks at a time but the last operation was a great success.
'Now the future is looking good for me, and I'm looking forward to living the rest of my life without the pain.'
An X-ray of Chantelle after the operation which shows the pins that were used to fuse her back together
Her mother Agnes, 42, said: 'All the doctors could see from previous tests was a straight spine so they didn't think there was anything wrong.
'They didn't realise her spine was not joined. Chantelle was at hospital umpteen times. It came to the point when I actually thought it was me who was paranoid.
'I said all I want is an X-ray. Give my daughter an X-ray, tell her there's nothing wrong and I'll walk away.
'The X-rays showed Chantelle's spine looked like it was split in two halves. Only the spinal cord was holding it together.
'We didn't have a choice but to let her have an operation, but it was completely terrifying for all of us.
'Without an operation, she'd lose all feeling from the waist down. If she had surgery, we still had a chance it would cause paralysis.
'It was horrible. Chantelle didn't cry until we got home. I think she was just too shocked at what was happening to her.
'When they came after the operation to tell me Chantelle was moving her legs, I cried for hours.'
Titanium rods were inserted into the base of her back and and bone from her right hip was drilled out and transferred into her spine to try and fuse her vertebrae.
Chantelle was in hospital for six weeks and suffered from an infection in her spine - leading to her having another operation just a month later.
In November Chantelle had to have yet another 9 hour operation on her spine in which doctors removed the titanium rods and transferred bone from her left hip.
In March this year Chantelle had an operation that her mother hopes will be her final spinal surgery.
Using bone from a 'bone bank' Chantelle has had a spinal fusion using bone marrow that people have donated- in a similar way to a blood bank.
It is now hoped that Chantelle's spine will fully heal and she will be able to realise her dream of becoming a hairdresser.
Thanos Tsirikos, clinical director of the Scottish National Spine Deformity Centre operated on Chantelle.
He said: 'It is extremely rewarding to see how well Chantelle has done. I love my job, you couldn't do it otherwise. It makes a huge difference to the unit when families come back to say thank you.
'This sort of service is very intense. It is a great privilege to get this response from the families.' ( dailymail.co.uk )
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