Arianto is a seventeen-year-old boy from Indonesia and was born with neurofibromatosis. His condition is rare in that it is at the extreme end of the clinical spectrum, causing gigantism of one side of his face destroying healthy tissue. The weight of his tumor caused him severe headaches and facial discomfort. He had his first operation in summer 2004 and his second stage in 2005/2006. During his stays in England, Arianto’s confidence has blossomed and he learnt to read and write. He is now back in Jakarta starting an internship and looking forward to a better future.
Kalyani
Kalyani was born with a complex facial cleft in central India, which resulted in a defect in the front of her skull, two large ridges on her forehead, a limited nose and eyes significantly displaced. Her parents had tried for 4 years to find treatment for her. When they heard that the only hope for surgery was abroad, her father copied a letter translated into English 400 times and gave them to any foreigner he met.
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Trang
Trang is a delightful 16 year old Vietnamese girl. At 10 her family noticed that her left eye was starting to be pushed forward and she was diagnosed with a fibroblastoma. Despite travelling the length of the country to see specialists and undergoing two previous surgeries the tumour contined its destructive progress and was threatening her eye sight.
She has made a remarkable recovery from a young girl so shy that she seemed almost invisable into a confident outgoing teenager.
Mesaidi
Mesaidi is a nine-year-old girl from Kenya who was born with a severe facial cleft. Her parents and a local charity (Kwale Eye Clinic) saved for surgery locally which had very limited results. Because she is not able to close her left eye she has had numerous infections and has lost the sight in this eye. We are looking forward to meeting her early in 2007.
Tung
Tung is a fourteen-year-old Vietnamese boy who was referred to us by our partners Children in Vietnam and Giving it Back to Kids. Tung has Kimura disease, a very rare disease which is usually self limiting. Even rarer are cases such as Tung’s where the tumor continues to grow. The tumor is around his facial nerve and he will need surgery. His surgery will be on Saturday 11 November.
