SURGERY BEGINS FOR GIRL, 2, WITH `WEREWOLF' FACE.Byline: Associated Press A little girl with a furry, werewolf-like face that scares other children began a surgical makeover Tuesday to save her from deadly cancer and a short, unhappy life. A Philadelphia pediatric pediatric /pe·di·at·ric/ (pe?de-at´rik) pertaining to the health of children. pe·di·at·ric adj. Of or relating to pediatrics. surgeon believes his procedure can rid 2-year-old Abys DeJesus of the cancer-prone cells and hairy disfigurement dis·fig·ure tr.v. dis·fig·ured, dis·fig·ur·ing, dis·fig·ures To mar or spoil the appearance or shape of; deform. [Middle English disfiguren, from Old French desfigurer once known as ``human werewolf werewolf: see lycanthropy. werewolf In European folklore, a man who changes into a wolf at night and devours animals, people, or corpses, returning to human form by day. syndrome'' and leave her virtually unscarred. ``Are you scared?'' Cindly DeJesus asked her daughter moments before she underwent surgery. The girl, clutching a Barney doll, nodded slowly. ``Do you want to do it?'' she was asked. This time, she nodded emphatically. Abys was born in Puerto Rico with hairy congenital nevus congenital nevus n. A melanocytic nevus that is visible at birth, is often larger than an acquired nevus, and usually involves deeper dermal structures than an acquired nevus. , a rare condition that causes dense hair to sprout between her eyes, over her nose and over more than half her face, puckering one eye. Twenty-three smaller patches mark her body. It is similar in appearance but apparently unrelated to the ``werewolf gene,'' a disorder that strikes only men in a single Mexican family and makes them so hairy some have joined the circus as ``werewolves.'' Neither Abys' 11-month-old sister, Luisette, nor her newborn brother, Luis, is afflicted af·flict tr.v. af·flict·ed, af·flict·ing, af·flicts To inflict grievous physical or mental suffering on. [Middle English afflighten, from afflight, , nor is anyone else in her family. Abys often prompts screams from children and curious stares from adults. In the past, people like Abys would be outcasts, said Dr. Adrian Lo of Philadelphia's St. Christopher's Hospital. ``From the name of the condition alone, you can imagine what life was like with this disfigurement,'' Lo said. On Tuesday, Lo inserted five balloon-like implants beneath the skin on Abys' neck, nape, cheek and forehead. Over the next two months, he will gradually pump them full of saline solution saline solution n. A solution of any salt, usually an isotonic sodium chloride solution. Also called salt solution. Saline solution A solution of sterile water and salt used in a variety of medical procedures. , stretching the skin a bit at a time. After two months, the implants will be removed, the hairy portion of her skin will be cut away and the extended flesh stitched over the opening. The result is expected to be much smoother and more natural than a skin graft skin graft Autologous, donated, or surrogate skin removed from one site to cover surfaces on another region with 3rd-degree burns or traumatic tissue loss. See Split-thickness graft. Cf Artificial skin, 'Spray-on' skin. , which can leave puckers and valleys. While he has used the stretch-technique before, this is the first time Lo has tried it on a facial nevus nevus /ne·vus/ (ne´vus) pl. ne´vi [L.] 1. any congenital skin lesion; a birthmark. 2. a type of hamartoma representing a circumscribed stable malformation of the skin and occasionally of the oral mucosa, , where the risks of further disfigurement are greater. After nearly four hours of surgery, Lo pronounced himself ``extremely pleased'' with the first day's outcome. ``Abys is on the way to an entirely new appearance,'' he said. The girl will spend the night in the hospital and then return to the family's temporary home in North Philadelphia. In a week, she will return to the hospital for the first of a series of saline injections. Doctors said they were not sure how much the operation would cost but that Medicaid would cover it. CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: Abys DeJesus sits with her mother, Cindly. The Puert o Rican girl started treatment Tuesday in Philadelphia for a hair disorder. Associated Press |
|
||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion