My wife has two working vertebrae, one on top, one on the bottom. The rest are fused with a pair of titanium rods.She seems to get around OK.
She worked hard to relearn skiing; but she is able to compensate for no upper body rotation.
I get to drive in heavy traffic, her ability to rotate and see 360° is non-existent. We also had to downgrade her motorcycle. An 1100 with no flexibility wasn't working, she has an 800, now.
Seems like a "keeper" to me.