A 15-year-old boy in China will soon be able to take his normal first steps again after being left disabled by his super long neck. Fu Wengui, nicknamed “giraffe boy,” has three extra vertebrae in his neck — a condition known as congenital scoliosis — causing pain, stress on his nerves, and making it difficult for him to walk. The corrective surgery, sponsored by an undisclosed Beijing charity, will allow Wengui to go out in public again, without the unwanted attention.

"I hope I can have a normal neck," said Wengui, the NY Daily News reported. The extra vertebrae press on his nerves in his neck and make it difficult for him to walk. Currently, Wengui doesn’t like to go out anymore because his condition attracts attention from strangers as he struggles to walk.

At the age of 6, Wengui was diagnosed with congenital scoliosis and an abnormal chest frame. This spinal deformity occurs very early in development, in the first six weeks of embryonic formation, says the Scoliosis Research Society, and it mostly happens before the mother knows she is pregnant. While it is typically discovered during the infant or toddler period, the condition does not appear until a child’s adolescent years, like in Wengui’s case.

The Chinese teen is expected to undergo a surgical procedure by doctors in Chaoyang Hospital in Beijing, who are making out a treatment plan. Surgical treatments Wengui may go through include spinal fusion and hemivertebra removal. In spinal fusion, the abnormal curved vertebrae are fused together so that they heal into a single, solid bone. This is able to stop the growth in the abnormal part of the spine, preventing the curve from getting worse. In hemivertebra removal, a single hemivertbra can be surgically removed, and then doctors use metal implants to correct the curve. The procedure will only fuse two to three vertebrae together.

It remains unknown exactly how much of Wengui’s neck can be removed without causing severe damage. The corrective surgery for the boy’s neck is expected to relieve his condition. Wengui’s dad, Fu Genyou, like his son, hopes to eliminate the public commotion the long neck causes. “He always causes a stir whenever he goes out,” said Genyou, the Daily Mail reported.

Wengui's surgery date is pending on the treatment plan doctors in Beijing are designing for him to shorten his neck.