A man who underwent one of the few partial face transplant surgeries in the world has gone public, revealing the results of the gruelling 30-hour surgical procedure.<br /><br />  <table style="width: 95px; height: 142px" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="95" align="right" border="1">  <tbody>  <tr>  <td><img alt="" src="/imagedata/2010/may/face-transplant.jpg" border="0" /></td></tr>  <tr>  <td>  <p align="center"><span style="font-size: 8pt"><strong>New beginning:</strong> Rafael hugs a nurse yesterday after undergoing a face transplant at a Sevilla Hospital. <strong>Pic/AFP</strong></span></p></td></tr></tbody></table>Identified only as Rafael, he spoke to reporters yesterday at the Virgen del Rocio University Hospital in Seville, Spain, where the surgery took place in January.<br /><br />Rafael was born with neurofibromatosis, a congenital defect that left his face marred by benign tumors. Doctors in Spain replaced the lower two-thirds of his face with tissue from a deceased donor.<br /><br />"I want to thank the donor's family and the medical team," he said.<br /><br /><strong>Alone time</strong><br /><br />But Rafael, whose last name and age were withheld, won't be sharing more of his story anytime soon. He told reporters that he hopes "to be left alone."<br /><br />Dr Tomas Gomez Cia, who led the surgery, wanted Rafael to appear in public in hopes of garnering donations for future face transplant surgeries.<br /><br />Cia added that Rafael is pleased with the outcome of his procedure.<br /><br />"Not only did he not see himself as a monster, but rather he also thought he looked younger," he said.<br /><br />Rafael is the second Spanish patient, and the ninth worldwide, to receive a partial face transplant.<br /><br />  <table class="ae_noborder" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="2" width="400" border="0">  <tbody>  <tr>  <td bgcolor="#ef4130"><strong><font color="#ffffff">Full transplant</font></strong></td></tr>  <tr>  <td bgcolor="#e1e1e1"><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Last month a team of surgeons carried out the world's first full-face transplant on a young Spanish farmer unable to breathe or eat on his own since accidentally shooting himself in the face five years ago.<br /><br />It was the most extensive operation yet and the 11thu00a0 transplant worldwide.</font></td></tr></tbody></table>

A man who underwent one of the few partial face transplant surgeries in the world has gone public, revealing the results of the gruelling 30-hour surgical procedure

Face transplant man goes public

Trending Stories

Latest Photos

Latest Videos

Latest Web Stories

Mid-Day Fast

Home / News / World News / Article / Face transplant man goes public

Face transplant man goes public

Trending Stories

Latest Photos

Latest Videos

Latest Web Stories

Mid-Day Fast