Nigerian surgeon leads groundbreaking heart surgery for girl with heart outside chest
A Nigerian Consultant Congenital Cardiac Surgeon, Dr. Ikenna Omeje, has led a medical team in a landmark surgery to save the life of seven-year-old Vanellope Hope Wilkins, a girl born with her heart outside her chest—a rare condition known as ectopia cordis.
Vanellope was diagnosed with the life-threatening condition while still in the womb and was delivered via Caesarean section at Glenfield Hospital in November 2017.
Ectopia cordis is an extremely rare congenital anomaly where the heart develops outside the chest cavity.
According to WebMD, the condition affects approximately eight out of every one million babies, with most cases resulting in stillbirth or death within a few days of birth.
On April 16, 2025, a milestone was reached when Dr. Omeje and a team of about 20 specialists successfully reconstructed Vanellope’s chest to house and protect her heart.
The medical team was drawn from the East Midlands Congenital Heart Centre and Leicester Children’s Hospital, and included anaesthetists, paediatric surgeons, operating department practitioners, perfusionists, and theatre nurses.
Support also came from visiting cardiothoracic surgeon Nagarajan Muthialu of Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children.
During the complex procedure, Vanellope was placed on an extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) machine—a device that temporarily takes over the function of the heart and lungs.
Surgeons carefully separated her heart from a thin layer of protective skin and performed a bilateral osteotomy of the ribs.
This allowed the ribs to be stretched forward and fused, effectively reconstructing and securing her chest.
Dr. Omeje, who was also part of the team present at Vanellope’s birth, said the surgery was the culmination of years of careful planning. “Vanellope’s case is incredibly rare.
We had to draw on multiple surgical techniques to perform this operation.
It’s been a long and challenging journey, but seeing her recover is an incredible feeling,” he said.
Vanellope’s mother, Naomi, expressed profound gratitude and relief following the successful surgery.
“Saying goodbye before the operation was the hardest part.
But when I saw the consultants’ faces after surgery, I knew it had gone well. What they’ve done is beyond amazing.
Vanellope is a fighter, and I’m so proud of her,” she said.
Experts still do not fully understand the cause of ectopia cordis, though it is believed to be linked to abnormal development during pregnancy, including issues with the sternum, pericardium, and abdominal wall.
Some cases are associated with genetic conditions such as trisomy 18 and Turner syndrome, and recent research suggests a link to the absence of a gene called BMP2, which may hinder normal chest development.