7-yr-old was born with deformed jaw struggled to eat or breathe — then doctors used his ribs to help him breathe
For most children, learning to eat on their own or running out into the garden for a breath of fresh air is part of natural behaviour. For seven-year-old William Tuckwell from Bath in England, those simple things felt out of reach. Born with a severely underdeveloped jaw, he struggled to breathe and swallow from the moment he entered the world, per ITV. After a remarkable surgery that involved grafting bone from his ribs, William is finally able to breathe, eat and swallow independently. It is a milestone for his family because they feared that they might never see William doing things like other kids.
William was born with Treacher Collins syndrome, a rare condition. As per research done by Christopher C Chang and Derek M Steinbacher, which was published in PubMed Central, this condition affects the facial bone formation, like small jaws, missing/malformed ears, eye abnormalities, etc. Breathing, eating and speech difficulties are common, especially in early childhood.
William's lower jaw hadn’t formed properly. Within days of birth, he was rushed to neonatal intensive care and given a tracheostomy to keep his airway open. His mother, Kate, remembers those early days. No preparation is enough for any parent to go through a crucial situation and see their child in such a condition. “He was whisked into neonatal intensive care and given a tracheostomy at two weeks old. It was disbelief at what was happening,” she recalls. “The first few years, we were just focusing on keeping William alive."
As William grew older, the lack of a functioning jaw joint made even everyday life complicated. He could not leave the house without someone trained in tracheostomy care. Independence, the kind other children his age were just beginning to explore, wasn’t possible. Eventually, his school and surgeon, Mr Alistair Cobb, encouraged the family to consider a major reconstructive procedure. Surgeons planned to rebuild William’s jaw using his own rib bone, including the cartilage “cap” needed to create a new joint, per Associated Press. “When I got told about the surgery, it was a really hard thing to consent to,” Kate says. “Giving a bit of your child’s rib to go to the jaw felt brutal. I was so scared. I kept saying, ‘I hope it works.'”
In May 2025, William underwent the eight-hour operation at Bristol Children’s Hospital. Surgeons reconstructed the missing joints and fitted an external metal frame to lengthen his jaw slowly. For a month, William’s family tightened the screws each day at home, a painstaking process that moved the bone forward one millimetre at a time. It was not an easy recovery. The frame was heavy and skin infections came and went. William missed school but remained cheerful. He also got help from the school and hospital check-ins. At first, Kate was worried to see any visible progress. Then came the moment she describes with a hint of humour now: a piece of spaghetti appeared through William’s nose while he was eating. Odd as it was, it signalled that a new space had opened inside his mouth, a sign that the surgery was working.
Mr Cobb, who carried out the procedure, calls William “remarkable.” “He’s been through a lot for a seven-year-old boy,” he says. “He’s got through it with so much grace and his sense of humor is fantastic.” The surgery has been the best decision for William's life. He no longer depends on a tube to breathe. He can eat without fear. And for the first time, he can step outside without specialized medical support.