5 years ago
Right now, surgeons in the U.S. are preparing for the first Total face transplant on a human. It is extremely risky. What may offer incredible hope to some may prove disastrous to others.
Jennifer Ryan's Report Volunteers' are already coming forward to wear somebody else?s face. In the revenge thriller ?FACE OFF? an absurd, futuristic plastic surgery allows a hero and villain to switch identities by literally swapping faces.
Now, real-life doctors in America are racing to be the first in the world to transplant a face, from a cadaver onto another human being. Medical ethicists say this extremely dangerous surgery begs for more research but the patients are already lining up! "Once we start doing facial transplants, it would be for the most severely disfigured. "These are people who've lost part or most of their face to trauma or disease or burns." Says Dr. Richard Redett of John's Hopkins Plastic Surgeon
"I had acid thrown in my face by an ex-boyfriend.? says a burn survivor named Gail.
Gail asked us to dim our lights to hide her scars and removed that mask she must wear everyday, to keep her skin smooth. Bill Marshall was burned in an explosion at work 20 years ago. My grandchildren, says there's nothing wrong with Pop. Bill thinks the medical community is creating false-hope. But it HAS been done already, on rats!
The faces of white and black rats were surgically switched at the Cleveland Clinic, which just received approval to do the world's first face transplant on a human.
But is going from rats to human, skipping a few steps? ?That's a big concern of many involved in this research--there are a lot of unanswered questions ?says Redett.
Psychologically, what happens to the person who suddenly gains a new identity? What if the body rejects the new face, or what if the powerful immunosuppressant drugs poison the body while preserving the face?
"Is this skin going to turn into a wax mask? We don't know--that's a possibility! Skin us changing all the time." says Dr. Steven Hopping who is an Ethicist.
"This is not like John Travolta in 'Face Off?! Absolutely not! There will be scars? says Hopping.
He says the person will never look normal. He believes they may not look as good as a burn!
Finding a person to donate a face is another question. Just because you've said 'yes' on your driver's license or a donor card, does NOT mean you're giving consent for your face to be donated.
And even in the best of hands, after organ transplant one in five organs can be lost. The body can reject the organ. ?It's an issue we still haven't worked out yet.? Says Reddett. I feel bad for some of the children burned badly because schools can be cruel, especially growing up? says burn patient Dmitrius Dantinne.
But while Dmitrius, Bill and Gail can all understand the intrigue, they just can't imagine living with someone else?s identity.
Gail says "If I could get it with how my own face was I'd jump at the chance! Because you take so much for granted. The little things I used to complain of before. I'd do anything to have those things back now! I'm sorry.?
Click on video to see Jennifer Ryan's report.
Written by Jennifer Ryan
