Genetics, or just a childhood condition?

More on my dad's side of the family.

My grandmother (my dad's mom) was the eldest of three children. She also had a younger brother (the middle child), and a younger sister (who passed away around 20 years of age).

Her younger brother had a son, my dad's cousin, known to many of you as my dad's cousin Michael, who's here in California, now living in Lodi.

The youngest great aunt, who passed away at an early age, passed away from what was believed at the time to be poisoning from mountain water she drank. It damaged her kidneys and she became septic. That was never confirmed, since medical resources aren't what they are now. My dad now believes she had a similar medical problem to something my sister Su fen had when she was in her late teens, which her doctor also said if left untreated would have resulted in death.

She had a condition known as "sunken chest". It's actually not that rare, as 1 in 1000 children are born with this condition. For many it's not that much of a problem unless the rib cage and sternum are so sunken they affect the operation of an organ, at which time, an operation is necessary.