FOR 26 years, he lived with low self-esteem and the fear of ridicule stemming from a concave chest that he was born with.
Mr Thandi (not his real name), suffers from a congenital deformity known as Pectus excavatum a condition which affects one in 1,000 children around the world.
The deformity is caused by the abnormal growth of the ribs and sternum, giving the sufferer's chest a sunken look.
If untreated, a deeper depression would develop, compressing both the heart and lungs, in turn causing breathing difficulties and affecting the growth of the heart.
Mr Thandi, a civil servant, found out that he was suffering from the condition when he was 10 years old.
He told my paper: "I was born with this deformity but the dent became obvious only when I was about 10. I didn't do anything about it because I didn't know of any way to rectify it."
He turned to his surgeon, Dr James Wong, a consultant cardiothoracic and vascular surgeon at Mount Elizabeth Medical Centre, just earlier this year, when he was 25.
Dr Wong said it was not uncommon for those with the condition to turn to doctors much later in life.
"They know that there's something wrong but they don't know where to go or what to do," he said.
In Mr Thandi's case, it was only after he read last year about reconstructive surgery to rectify the condition that he approached Dr Wong for help.
He underwent an operation within a week of meeting the surgeon.
Said Mr Thandi: "Every time I was about to take off my shirt to go for a swim, or when I was at the beach, something would hold me back. It wasn't very pleasant for me, so I decided to undergo the operation to look normal and gain confidence."
In the past, bones and cartilage had to be broken to correct the condition but, now, surgeons can surgically insert a curved steel bar in the chest cavity to push the sternum into the correct position.
The success rate stands at 90 per cent for children while for the adults, it is about 80 per cent.
Life has returned to normal for Mr Thandi, despite having a 30cm steel bar in his chest.
"I still drive, ride my bike, play soccer, run and swim as per normal. The steel bar does not limit me in any way, so long as I stay careful," he said.
