A former soldier has revealed that a face transplant was the best decision he ever made.
Mitch Hunter, 42, a former soldier from Indianapolis, has hailed his surgery as “the best decision (he) ever made” and can hardly believe how good it looks. He was just 21 when he was involved in a car crash after a night out, crashing into an electrical pylon carrying 10,000 volts on a North Carolina highway.
After pushing a female passenger out of harm’s way, the electrical current pumped continuously through his body, mainly through his face, for five minutes. The female passenger was left with only minor burns to her foot.
Hunter said: “I barely remember anything from when the wires touched my face. One minute I was helping the injured girl trying to get her away from the pole, the next I was in hospital nearly a month later.”
“I knew my injuries were serious when my mom and stepmom were in the room consoling one another because they usually hated each other,” he added.
Hunter woke up 27 days after the accident, and at first, no one would allow him to look at himself in a mirror. It wasn’t until his ex-girlfriend visited him with a mirror that he saw the impacts of the accident.
Hunter was forced to spend two months in hospital, underwent 67 facial reconstructive surgeries, and had part of his right leg amputated due to his severe burns. He also needed 20 skin grafts from his leg to fix the skin on his face and neck which had “melted”.
Hunter shared: “I can’t describe the feeling I had when seeing myself like that, it didn’t feel real – I was unrecognizable. I couldn’t believe how drastically my life had changed in what was a matter of minutes.”
In 2011, ten years after the incident, he became the third person in the world to undergo a full face transplant surgery. His face was replaced with one of a man who had recently died.
Hunter said he opted for the surgery because he did not want his three children to be bullied at school due to his disfigurement. He revealed he “didn’t want his children to be embarrassed by him in the future” and claims he does not regret the decision.
Hunter shared: “Having people scream at the sight of you is upsetting, and I couldn’t imagine that happening in the company of my own children. Having the transplant was the best decision of my life, and it has helped me put the accident behind me and finally move on with my life.”
Some 30 doctors spent more than 14 hours reconstructing his face during the risky operation. Thankfully his risk paid off and he is now unrecognizable with a full beard and full sensation on his face.
Mitch’s face was from an organ donor who had given his skin, soft tissue, cartilage from his nose, beard, and eyebrows. He needed micro-vascular surgery to connect the two main arteries to the new face, allowing his heart to start supplying it with blood.
Following the transplant, Hunter had to wait for five months for the initial swelling to ease before his face began to take its permanent shape. Hunter must take medicine for the rest of his life as a result of the transplant, but he is comfortable in his literally new skin and has gone on to become a father of three.
By 2011, there had only been two successful face transplants in America, and 10 globally. There have now been around 50 operations performed around the world.
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