Boy born with 2 per cent of his brain defies odds to survive

A British boy who was born with just 2 per cent of his brain left doctors stunned after his brain grew back to almost normal size.

Noah Wall, from Cumbria, England, was diagnosed with severe spina bifida before his birth in 2012. His parents, Shelley and Rob Wall, were advised five times to terminate the pregnancy after doctors claimed their baby had no brain. But the couple refused.

Incredibly, by the time Noah was three years old, scans showed that his brain had grown to 80 per cent of a normal brain’s size. Doctors believe that instead of being absent, Noah’s brain was compressed into a small space due to fluid buildup. Once a shunt was fitted, his brain expanded back to where it should have been.

His father, Rob, explained that as older parents, they felt confident in their decision to continue with the pregnancy. He believes younger couples might have felt pressured to terminate in similar circumstances, The New York Post reported.

Doctors initially warned that Noah would be severely disabled. They said he would never be able to talk, see, hear or eat. But he defied all the odds. "We waited with bated breath and they put a ‘Do Not Resuscitate’ notice on Noah,” his mom Shelley said.

His parents dedicated themselves to his brain development. They even flew him to Australia to undergo a radical therapy called neurophysics. This treatment, a mix of physiotherapy and cognitive exercises, helped him learn to sit up unaided — and even go surfing.

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Rob explained that neurophysics focuses on the brain’s ability to heal and correct the body’s nervous system. Normally, this therapy is not used for young children but Noah’s parents managed to get doctors to assess and treat him.

Doctors who once doubted his survival call Noah "extraordinary.”