Teenage girl who suffered horrific burns in fire regrows face on chest

A 17-year-old girl, who had her face severely disfigured in a house fire when she was 5, has been given fresh hope in the form of a face transplant.

face

by Jessica Anais Rach |
Published on

Xu Jianmei’s parents couldn’t afford plastic surgery, but agreed for Xu to try a new pioneering technology for free.

This involved Xu growing extra skin on her chest, formed from a removed blood vessel implanted from her thigh.

Xu grew the excess skin for her face on her chest
Xu grew the excess skin for her face on her chest

Surgeons then inserted a water-filled skin expander beneath the skin.

They “grew” the skin over the expander until they had enough for Xu’s new face.

When enough skin had grown, doctors performed a string of eight-hour operations, and Xu woke up after the most recent one, to find she once again had a chin, eyelids and an ear.

Touchingly, Xu said the best thing was she had regained the ability to smile.

Xu was offered the life-changing operation free

Surgeon Jiang Chenhong from Fuzhou, south eastern China, explained:

‘With her new face she’ll be able to express herself in a more precise way.

‘She will even be able to blush as her emotions change — but it will take time.’

Doctors say Xu’s wounds will take several weeks to heal.

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