China's Glass Girl amazes Italy, fosters medical cooperation

"You gave me a second life," Wei Ruihong, known by her thousands of Internet friends as the "Glass Girl", said with a smile to the team of specialists who successfully operated her at the civil hospital of Legnano, close to Italy's Milan.

Wei, 33, is affected by Osteogenesis Imperfecta (OI), a genetic bone disorder more commonly known as brittle bone disease, which led to her having broken her bones as many as 31 times due to low production of collagen.

"The disease was at a very advanced stage, with the skull slowly sinking into the spinal column," Marco Teli, a Consultant Orthopaedic and Spinal Surgeon who operated Wei with an inter-disciplinary group of more than 10 doctors and assistants, said.

"When we became aware of the case through an association that helps OI patients, we realized that we could not lose a minute," he added.

The surgery, though extremely complex, ended well and made international history as the first operation of this kind in Europe and one of the first in the world. Less than two months later, Wei has recovered the use of her upper limbs and she will return soon to China where she will continue rehabilitation.

"Wei is a psychologist, and her disablement has led her to offer an incredible inside wealth to others," Teli pointed out. "We were shocked by her moral strength. She never fell in despair even when we honestly told her that she may not survive to the surgery," he said.

The civil hospital of Legnano is renowned for its avant-garde technologies in the field of severe body deformity and especially stands out for tight collaboration between specialists. It successfully treated another Chinese national last year.

Before she left China, Wei had written a farewell letter to her parents in Handan, Hebei province. "I wanted them to go on with their own life, not to continue to suffer because of me," she told journalists eager to learn her extraordinary story.

Born from a peasant family, though the disease caused her much suffering, Wei managed to complete studies in Beijing and obtained the Certification (Grade II) of Qualified Psychologist in 2009.

Then she opened the Ruihong Line to provide free psychological consultations for those in need and also worked to help the some 100,000 patients suffering from severe forms of OI in China. Her recent autobiography, Glass Girl with A Crystal Heart, expresses hope for everyone.

Wei's lifetime of good actions rewarded her when a chain of solidarity launched in the internet took the Glass Girl to Italy.

She received 100 yuan (16 U.S. dollars) from each of thousands netizens under the good omen that she will give everyone of them an hour of psychology help when she feels better. Arrived with her sister in Legnano, she found many volunteers ready to assist her.

"I was fortunate," Wei said surrounded by the warm embrace of doctors and friends, and then expressed a wish. "I hope that my unforgettable experience will encourage medical dialogue and exchange between the two countries to save more lives," she said.