HAMPSHIRE mum Leah Boxall’s surgery has been deemed a success.

But the mother-of-one now faces a race against time to raise a further £20,000 for her second operation which will take place in six weeks.

As previously reported, Leah Boxall suffers from a rare condition called Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, which means her skull is crushing her neck.

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This week the mother from Hedge End made the trip to Spain to have a life-saving operation, which was unavailable on the NHS.

The six-hour surgery, which has fused her neck together, will stop her skull from crushing her neck.

Seven vertebrae in her neck were replaced with pieces of her ribs during the surgery and although it was deemed by doctors as a success, Leah will no longer be able to move her neck.

Following the operation, Leah was put into a medically induced coma to allow her body to recover.

Accompanied by her 12-year-old daughter Caitlyn and sister Heidi, Leah now faces a race against time to raise a further £20,000 on top of the £60,000 already raised.

The second surgery will ‘de-tether’ her spinal cord as well as fusing vertebrae in her lower back.

The former horse rider fears she will become paralysed if nothing is done to prevent her body from collapsing.

Leah will remain in Spain for the next 12 weeks and is relying on friends and family in Southampton to raise the money in her absence.

Her sister Heidi is urging health officials to offer the life-saving treatment in the UK.

She said: “It would have been so much better if they offered it in England.

“It is not acceptable that we have had to travel so far; the journey was terrible for Leah and fundraising has been an unnecessary burden that she has had to carry.

“People have been amazing, people that she doesn’t even know have raised money but it shouldn’t be necessary.

“I just want my sister to have a normal life, to be able to cook dinners and go around the house. I want her to be able to hug her daughter without being in excruciating pain.”