A competitive swimmer since she was 7, Kaya refused to let her scoliosis curve stop her from achieving her dreams.
Kaya said, “In 2024, I started getting shoulder pain, and not long after, I found out I had 47-degree severe lumbar thoracolumbar scoliosis.” Kaya and her family heard of Shriners Children’s Philadelphia through a friend who is also a scoliosis patient at our hospital.
Due to the severity of Kaya’s curve, she was scheduled for surgery within two months of her diagnosis. Steven Hwang, M.D., performed a vertebral body tethering (VBT) surgery on Kaya’s spine. VBT uses a strong, flexible cord that gently pulls on the outside of a scoliosis curve to straighten the spine. A screw is placed in each vertebra of the curve and then attached to the flexible cord with the spine in a straighter position. Dr. Hwang said, “Kaya was an exemplary patient. She was super nice and incredibly stoic throughout her treatment.”
All of the doctors and nurses at Shriners were amazing when I was there.
Kaya recovered remarkably from surgery and walked daily to promote healing and mobility. She was even able to get back in the water six weeks later. She worked on regaining her strength and mobility in physical therapy, and said, “Swimming and stretching help keep my core strong and my pain minimal.” She is proud of how far she has come and is propelling forward in the face of her diagnosis.
She said, “I accomplished my goal of achieving Middle Atlantic Junior Championship qualifying times in both the 100- and 200-yard backstroke. I also earned a spot on the Middle Atlantic Zone Team, a regional USA Swimming All-Star team made up of the top-qualifying swimmers from Eastern Pennsylvania, Southern New Jersey and Delaware. I was able to accomplish my goal of getting a Junior Olympics swimming cut.”
Kaya was eager to become a Patient Ambassador, a patient who represents the hospital and shares their medical journey to inspire future patients and make them feel less alone. Kaya’s sister, Teagan, is also a scoliosis patient at Shriners Children’s Philadelphia. Kaya is a great older sister who models resilience and courage in the face of adversity.
Kaya said, “All of the doctors and nurses at Shriners were amazing when I was there. I was so scared for the surgery, but everyone was so kind. I want to return that kindness by sharing my story and hopefully be able to help other kids like me.” The Shriners Children’s Philadelphia team wishes Kaya luck in her dreams of becoming a collegiate Olympic swimmer and will be cheering her on every stroke of the way.
