A Man with Three Faces

The French citizen becomes the world’s first man with double face transplant after his second face transplant is successful recently. Jerome Hamon was suffering from neuro fibro mitosis, a genetic disorder that deeply disfigures parts of the body with different kinds of tumors.

43-year-old Jerome Hamon received his first full face transplant in the year 2010, but months after the transplant, while going through a treatment for a common cold, the use of antibiotic affected his surgery in 2015. Next year the reaction started and his face started to deteriorate.

It is after a year in 2017, the doctors had to take the decision to remove his face because of spreading necrosis. He was kept in a hospital without a face for next two months. He survived, in fact without eyelids, ears, skin and could not eat or speak. He could not hear anything properly and had to express himself only by the movement of his heads and by writing as much as he can.

Dr. Laurent Lantieri associated with Georges Pompidou European Hospital, which had performed the face transplant said, “We could not leave him without a face, and his condition was that of the walking dead”.

The hospital authorities needed the patient’s approval for this challenging second transplant, which Jerome had to give. “I made up my mind quickly, I understood I did not have any other choice”, he later said.

On January 15th the medical team came to know that a face donor has been found, a 22-year-old man who died leaving his will to donate his face. Accordingly, plans were made and with huge logistic and medical support, the operation was conducted on the very next day. The daylong surgery proved to be the groundbreaking one as the doctors were successful in the transplant, which has also advanced the medical science.

The courage with which the patient fought is indeed incredible, Jerome is mentally very strong and brave and has pulled himself through the painful process. “While he was waiting, he never complained, he was even in a good mood”, said Bernard Cholley, the anesthetist.

Now the new face looks smooth with Jerome’s skull, skin and feature are yet to be fully aligned. He can speak now but with difficulty. According to Doctors, it will take some time to recover fully and look nearly perfect.

In order to prepare himself for the transplant, Jerome has undergone three months special blood treatment to remove the antibodies left inside his body and to balance the immune system. He received chemotherapy and all this without a face and painful living.

At last, his struggle of months brought him some happiness in the life. It is his bravery and determination which made the miracle possible. Jerome is now very happy with the operation and his newfound facial identity. “If I hadn't accepted this new face, it would have been terrible. It’s a question of identity. But here we are, it's good, it’s me. When I look in the mirror, I say, ‘That is Jerome’.”