Updated December 14, 2017 08:33:00

A baby born with an extremely rare condition has survived three surgeries to place her heart inside her chest, in what is believed to be a UK-first.

Vanellope Hope was born in late November with her heart growing on the outside of her body.

The unusual condition is called ectopia cordis.

She was delivered prematurely on November 22 by Caesarean section in order to reduce the chances of infection and to give her the best chance of survival.

Photo: Vanellope's skin was used to cover the hole in her chest. (AP: Ben Birchall)

She had her first surgery on the day she was born to put her heart back inside her body.

In her most recent surgery, her skin was used to cover the hole in her chest.

Dr Nick Moore, from Leicester's Glenfield Hospital, said the baby was in the hospital's paediatric intensive care unit.

"She has a long way to go but, so far at least she now has a chance at a future," he said.

Only eight in 1 million babies are born with ectopia cordis.

Of those eight, 90 per cent are either stillborn or die within the first three days of life.

Infection poses a severe risk to babies with this condition, although there have been some cases in the US in which surgery has been successful.

Photo: Vanellope Hope with her parents Naomi Findlay and Dean Wilkin. (AP: Ben Birchall)

AP/Reuters

Topics: health, child-health-and-behaviour, pregnancy-and-childbirth, united-kingdom, england

First posted December 14, 2017 08:19:53