A mother has given birth to a 'miracle baby' after doctors warned her abdomen was too scarred for her to carry another child.
Lucy Elliott, 26, developed excruciating back pain following the birth of her eldest son Adam in September 2014.
Barely able to walk, Ms Elliott was referred for an MRI scan, which revealed a metal hook had been left in her abdomen following emergency surgery to remove her appendix in April 2013 at Chesterfield Royal Hospital.
Although the five-hour operation to remove the hook was a success, doctors warned Ms Elliot it was found close to her uterus and may have caused too much damage for her to have a successful pregnancy again.
Desperate to give Adam a sibling, Ms Elliott defied the odds when her and her partner Craig Halliday, 33, welcomed Charlie in September 2017.
Lucy Elliott gave birth to her 'miracle baby' Charlie (pictured left with her partner Craig Halliday in September 2017) after doctors warned her abdomen was too scarred for her to carry a child. Also parents to four-year-old Adam, the family are pictured right recently
Doctors left a metal hook (pictured) in Ms Elliott's abdomen following emergency surgery to treat an appendicitis in April 2013. She first became aware of the problem after developing excruciating back pain following Adam's arrival. Scans later revealed the hook near her uterus
Ms Elliott's ordeal began in April 2013 when she woke one morning in excruciating pain.
Her GP referred her to Chesterfield Royal, where doctors warned her appendix needed to be removed immediately.
Ms Elliott, who works as an administrator, said: 'The operation seemed straightforward.
'But a few weeks later I started getting a terrible backache. I couldn't understand why but thought I must have pulled a muscle.'
Despite her discomfort, Ms Elliott shortly became pregnant and gave birth to Adam the following year.
'Following his birth my backache really increased,' she said. 'Some days it was so severe I even found playing with Adam difficult.
'It was heartbreaking not to be able to run around with him as other mums do.'
After being referred by her GP for some tests, scans revealed the metal hook that was causing Ms Elliott's pain.
'When I had my appendix out, it was keyhole surgery,' she said. 'The hook at the end of the surgical instrument had fallen off inside me and no one had noticed.'
Although a relief to know what was causing her discomfort, Ms Elliott then faced the difficult decision of whether to have it removed and risk making her suffering worse.
'Doctors said they didn't know how far it had embedded inside me,' she said. 'They said it might be best to leave it where it was as removing it could cause more damage.'
Desperate to get her life back to normal, Ms Elliott decided to go under the knife again and instantly felt better for it.
'Finally I could run,' she said. 'It was fantastic to feel so much better.'
