Here at Mega Curioso we have already shared cases of people who have had face transplants - complex surgeries and, as with all types of organ transplants, are associated with many risks and complications, including, of course, rejection of transplanted tissue.

For, according to Maria Cheng of the Associated Press news portal, doctor Laurent Lantieri of the Georges Pompidou Hospital in Paris announced that she had submitted one of his patients to not one but two face transplants, making the boy the first. in the world going through this procedure twice. The story of the transplant, a 43-year-old boy named Jerome Hamon, began in 2010 when he had to undergo surgery for the first time.

Faceless man

According to Maria, at the time, the donor was a 60-year-old man and the procedure was successfully performed. However, in 2015 Jerome became ill and the drugs he was required to use during treatment began to interfere with the drugs he was taking to prevent rejection and the transplanted face tissues began to die in November last year.

Jerome During Surgery (AP)

So the surgeon was forced to remove the patient's face - imagine the situation! - leaving Jerome faceless. This means that the patient has lost skin, eyelids and ears, not to mention the immense risk of getting an infection. While waiting for a new transplant, the patient was unable to eat normally, speak and had impaired hearing.

Luckily, in January a donor appeared - this time a younger than the previous one, a 22-year-old boy - but before undergoing surgery again, the doctor had to exchange all of Jerome's blood to eliminate any antibodies present. in your body originating from previous treatments. This process was carried out over a month and, once completed, the faceless man was finally able to receive the transplant.

Jerome and his three faces (AP)

According to Laurent Lantieri, the surgeon in charge of the procedure, Jerome is doing quite well, especially considering all he has had to go through, and even released the boy for a short trip recently.

Already according to Maria, other doctors praised the initiative and revealed that this and other techniques being developed around the world could be used to treat critically ill patients such as Jerome, since the risk of rejection in transplant recipients is constant. Being able to subject these people to a new procedure could really help save more lives.

Check out some stories from people who have had a face transplant:

• Learn another success story involving face transplant
• Largest Face Transplant Patient in History Makes New Appearance
• Face transplant: boy tells what it's like to live with a donor's face