The parents of a girl who underwent surgery for a rare condition even before she was born are organising a charity concert to raise money for other children who suffer from it.

Jo and John Keohane’s daughter Erin, who will be five next week, was diagnosed with congenital diaphragmatic hernia when Jo was 20 weeks pregnant and surgeons had to operate while she was still in the womb.

Five days after she was born Erin underwent another operation and since then, following more treatment, she has made good progress against the odds and is now attending Temple Ewell Primary School. The family live in River.

CDH is a hole in the diaphragm – the muscle under the lungs that is responsible for breathing – that allows organs from the abdomen to move into the chest, meaning there is no room for the lungs to grow.

It affects about one in every 2,500 babies, and only 50% of these babies survive. The condition is usually diagnosed through a routine ultrasound during pregnancy.

Although the outlook for babies born with CDH is increasingly positive with new surgical techniques, only 50% are likely to survive, and those who do may have long-term problems.

CDH UK is a charity which consists of families, friends and medical professionals, and Mrs Keohane is one of the charity’s family support team for Kent, offering help to parents who are in the same situation they faced.

They have organised an evening of top class music at St Margaret’s Church, St Margaret’s, on Saturday, May 18, at 7.30pm, with Deal singer Rebecca Robinson and multi-instrumentalist Simeon Wood.

Tickets for the concert are £8 and are available from St Margaret’s post office and Dover Museum or by calling 07790 505933.

There is more information about the charity on www.cdhuk.co.uk

Full story in this week's Dover Mercury.