Parents always do their best to keep their children safe, and these parents did something extra for their daughter. Little Vienna Brookshaw was born to her mom, Celine Casey, in April 2021 in the United Kingdom. When Casey first saw Vienna, she saw a mark on her forehead, between her eyebrows.
The mark, known as congenital melanocytic nevus (CMN), didn’t cause any health issues for Vienna, but her mom was concerned it might upset her feelings as she got older. CMN is when a baby is born with a bunch of harmless color cells, and they might have gotten bigger as Vienna got older.
Vienna’s condition is uncommon, and no one could guess how big the birthmark might become as she grows up. Her mom, Casey, didn’t want Vienna to face any difficulties because of it as she got older.
Casey quickly asked the doctors if there was a way to remove the birthmark because she was afraid Vienna might blame her parents later if it stayed.
Casey, the loving mom, said, “We like seeing her grow and can’t wait for the day she can share her own feelings. We’d still love her even if she kept the birthmark.”
Casey wanted to remove Vienna’s birthmark because when Vienna was little, people would stare at her, and Casey saw that others treated her differently. This made Casey even more determined to have the birthmark removed.
However, the NHS (National Health Service) refused the surgery because they usually reject surgeries that aren’t needed for a person’s physical health. They saw the surgery as cosmetic, not necessary.
Casey began asking for donations to pay for Vienna’s surgery from other places. In just one day, kind people gave $52,000. Sadly, it wasn’t enough because hospital expenses had increased because of COVID-19. They still needed $27,000 more for the surgery.
So, they asked for more help on GoFundMe to cover the extra costs of their daughter’s surgery to remove the birthmark.
The worried mom said, “Everyone has things they feel unsure about in their body. Even though the doctor said it wouldn’t affect Vienna’s feelings right now, we felt differently. She’s starting school at three, and little kids notice things like that.”
Now, Vienna is two years old, and her birthmark has been taken off completely. The only thing left is a small mark on her forehead. Casey, her mom, keeps sharing updates about her daughter’s healing and often says how beautiful her baby girl is.
Even after removing the birthmark, the parents went to London so the doctor could see how well the small scar on Vienna’s forehead had healed. They wanted to be sure she didn’t need more surgeries or treatments after the three she already had. But for now, she’s a healthy two-year-old and doesn’t need any more medical care!
We’re sending lots of good wishes to little Vienna. We hope she stays healthy always! Feel free to share her story with others so they can know about her too!