Lincoln, Norrin, and Remley Niece are three Indiana siblings who share more than just blood. All three of them suffer from a rare condition that only affects less than one in 1,000 people: Chiari malformation.
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While the three Remley brothers live a normal life nowadays, their symptoms were worrying when they started to appear. Back in June 2022, Remley was the first of the brothers to receive the Chiari malformation diagnosis, but he didn't need surgery at the time.
According to Mayo Clinic, this condition causes the brain tissue to extend into the spinal canal. Symptoms include headaches, neck pain dizziness, trouble swallowing, and speech changes, among others.
Lincoln too started suffering from symptoms such as headaches, but everyone thought that it had something to do with a congenital heart defect. However, he was eventually diagnosed with Chiari malformation in February 2023. He underwent surgery a month later, and Remley - whose symptoms got worse - also had surgery in August 2023.
Sharing The Same Scar
The surgery in question is called a Chiari malformation decompression. In simple terms, the surgery removes a part of the skull to create more space for the brain.
Norrin started presenting symptoms similar to his brothers' around the time Remley had his surgery. He later received the very same surgery on January 4th. Today, the three Niece brothers share the same scar.
"They all have this nice little zipper on the back of their head," said Whitney Niece, their mother, to WRTV. "The two youngest have, you can't see unless they have. There's a tube that goes all the way right here it's up here in their head. But that's it."
"You just kind of become numb and go into autopilot," said Whitney. "But it doesn't make it anymore emotionally easy. Sending your kid off into surgery."
Ron Niece, the boys' father, recalls how he felt about all the surgeries performed on his children. "It's pretty scary," he said. "There is no doubt about it. You just put your trust in the Riley physicians and the team there that they're going to make the right call."
Ron has been part of Extra Life, a fundraiser event, and is supporting Riley's Children Foundation, a nonprofit that provides free medical care. "As many of you know this past year has been a pretty crazy year for our family," said Ron in a Facebook post.
"Three brain surgeries in one year is a long hard journey for any family to undergo, but we made it through with the love and support of our family and friends!" he continued.
