{"id":11971,"date":"2026-01-31T09:12:59","date_gmt":"2026-01-31T10:12:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/curiousdrive.com\/?p=11971"},"modified":"2026-02-04T21:33:59","modified_gmt":"2026-02-04T21:33:59","slug":"what-is-situs-inversus-the-incredibly-rare-illness-catherine-ohara-was-diagnosed-with","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/curiousdrive.com\/index.php\/2026\/01\/31\/what-is-situs-inversus-the-incredibly-rare-illness-catherine-ohara-was-diagnosed-with\/","title":{"rendered":"What is situs inversus? The incredibly rare illness Catherine O\u2019Hara was diagnosed with"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\t\"Catherine\t<\/div>
Catherine O’Hara has died at the age of 71 (Picture: Gilbert Flores\/Variety via Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Following the announcement that Catherine O’Hara<\/a> has died at the age of 71, the world is reeling from her loss.<\/p>\n

Her Home Alone <\/a>and Schitt’s Creek<\/a> collaborators Macaulay Culkin<\/a> and Eugene and Dan Levy have so far led tributes, describing her as a ‘gift.’<\/p>\n

The cause of Catherine’s death hasn’t been announced, but it follows a ‘brief illness.’ She died at her home in Los Angeles<\/a> on Friday.<\/p>\n

When her sons were little, though, Catherine learned that she was living with a unique medical condition, which doctors happened upon almost by accident.<\/p>\n

Catherine previously revealed that she was diagnosed with situs inversus after she went to hospital with her son, as she and her husband had been asked to take some tests ahead of him starting nursery.<\/p>\n

And when the nurse did a scan on her, she thought, at first, there was a problem with the machine.<\/p>\n

‘I don’t even know the name because I don’t want to know the name,’ she said during an interview <\/a>with Katherine Hall in 2021.<\/p>\n

‘People are going to think I’m so ignorant not to know the name, but I kind of don’t want to know, because I didn’t know before that.’<\/p>\n

Catherine added that she’s one of seven children, and by the time she was diagnosed when her sons were little, her parents were no longer alive. <\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\"Catherine\t<\/div>
Macaulay Culkin has shared a tribute (Picture: Century Fox\/Kobal\/Shutterstock)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

So, she subsequently had no other knowledge of anyone in her family who was living with the same condition, including her siblings.<\/p>\n

She added: ‘When my doctor told us that my heart was on the right side and my organs were flipped, my husband immediately said: “No, her head’s on backwards.”‘<\/p>\n

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What is situs inversus?<\/h2>\n

According to the NHS<\/a>, situs inversus means that ‘major organs are on a different side of the body to normal \u2013 for example, heart on the right rather than the left.’<\/p>\n

Guidance published on the Cleveland Clinic <\/a>website adds that the rare condition is caused by ‘various genetic mutations,’ and that it can develop by itself, but it’s typically linked to other medical issues.<\/p>\n

Patients with situs inversus might have their liver and gallbladder on the left side of their bodies rather than their right, or their stomach and spleen might be on their right side rather than their left.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\"Catherine\t<\/div>
Catherine shared her diagnosis in 2021 (Picture: Axelle\/Bauer-Griffin\/FilmMagic)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Around 1 in every 10,000 people lives with the condition, and it’s more likely to be diagnosed in men than women.<\/p>\n

Situs inversus is often seen in people who have been diagnosed with a condition called primary ciliary dyskinesia<\/a>, which impacts the small, hair-like structures that help to clear mucus from the airways.<\/p>\n

There are a few different types of situs inversus, including:<\/p>\n