9-year-old Montrealer with rare scoliosis defies all odds

At the young age of nine, Emma Corbett from Montreal has been through a lot.

She suffers from a rare and severe form of scoliosis, a condition that causes a curve in her spine, which impacts her everyday life.

“We’ve gone through a bunch of surgeries, we know the (Montreal Children’s) hospital inside and out,” said her mother Cari Friedman. “And a cold is not a cold for Emma – when she gets sick, it affects her respiratory system a lot.”

Pulmonologist Dr. Aurore Côté, who has been following Emma for a few years, says her condition is one of the worst she’s ever seen — the shape of her spine affects her ability to breathe.

“It decreased the size of her chest walls, so the lungs might grow less,” said Côté. “She has difficulty breathing (in general) and also has difficulty breathing at night.”

5:01 IWK doctor first in North America to perform new scoliosis procedure

The severity of Emma’s condition made her family worry about what her life would look like, and if she would be able to be as active as other children.

“For me, there were a lot of questions: if she is going to ride a bike, if she’s going to skate, if she’s going to be able to do things that a typical child would be able to do at the different stages of her life,” said Friedman.

But a few years ago, Emma put those fears to rest.

She learned how to ride a bike in about 15 minutes and has never looked back.

“I just focused on riding and paid attention to the road and I just did it,” said Corbett.

On Friday, Emma will bring her skills to downtown Montreal as she participates in the 32nd edition of Pedal for Kids as the event’s spokeschild.

The fundraising initiative aims to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for the Montreal Children’s Hospital Foundation.

“It’s almost that when she’s on that bike, that bike represents a sense of ‘I’m free mom, I’m OK, I got this,'” said Friedman of the thrill of watching her daughter ride.