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US face transplant patient to back organ donation
Source: Agencies |
September 18, 2010, Saturday
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THERE is an initial shock upon first glance at Connie Culp, the woman who received the nation's first face transplant nearly two years ago. She taps her way through the hospital waiting room, feeling along the floor with a cane and smiling hesitantly at a visitor, even though she can only make out shadows and shapes.
Her face is wide and square-jawed. It is altogether too large for her diminutive frame, and therein lies the jolt of surprise: Up close, it's clear that this face does not belong to that body.
Her nose is long and straight. Her skin is cream-colored and smooth. She's wearing a soft gray shirt with a rhinestone brooch pinned to the collar. Ever since her husband shot her in the face in 2004, Culp doesn't concern herself with what other people think of her appearance.
"It don't matter what you look like, somebody's gonna find fault with you," she says, waving a hand dismissively. "Either the way you talk or something, you know? Nobody's perfect."
Life is on the upswing for Culp, 47, who underwent her final surgery in July. In an interview with The Associated Press on Tuesday at the Cleveland Clinic, Culp discussed her plans to become an advocate for organ donation. It was the choice of one anonymous donor that spared her from a life of eating and breathing through a tube, she says.
"My whole family had a hard time even coming around me because of the way I looked," she says. "We're closer than ever now." She stops, looking uncomfortable. "I mean, I hate to say that about my family. But it's hard."
The most recent surgery -- essentially a face-lift -- removed the flaps of skin that hung from her cheeks and chin, which weighed down her face and caused frequent headaches. The result, to her delight, is a face that's much thinner and more shapely. She can smile more easily now. She can feel the lips of her 3-year-old grandson when he kisses her on the cheek. And she recently ate a steak for the first time in years.
"This is still swelling from the surgery," she says, touching her round lower cheeks, "so this will eventually go down, too."
Her face is wide and square-jawed. It is altogether too large for her diminutive frame, and therein lies the jolt of surprise: Up close, it's clear that this face does not belong to that body.
Her nose is long and straight. Her skin is cream-colored and smooth. She's wearing a soft gray shirt with a rhinestone brooch pinned to the collar. Ever since her husband shot her in the face in 2004, Culp doesn't concern herself with what other people think of her appearance.
"It don't matter what you look like, somebody's gonna find fault with you," she says, waving a hand dismissively. "Either the way you talk or something, you know? Nobody's perfect."
Life is on the upswing for Culp, 47, who underwent her final surgery in July. In an interview with The Associated Press on Tuesday at the Cleveland Clinic, Culp discussed her plans to become an advocate for organ donation. It was the choice of one anonymous donor that spared her from a life of eating and breathing through a tube, she says.
"My whole family had a hard time even coming around me because of the way I looked," she says. "We're closer than ever now." She stops, looking uncomfortable. "I mean, I hate to say that about my family. But it's hard."
The most recent surgery -- essentially a face-lift -- removed the flaps of skin that hung from her cheeks and chin, which weighed down her face and caused frequent headaches. The result, to her delight, is a face that's much thinner and more shapely. She can smile more easily now. She can feel the lips of her 3-year-old grandson when he kisses her on the cheek. And she recently ate a steak for the first time in years.
"This is still swelling from the surgery," she says, touching her round lower cheeks, "so this will eventually go down, too."
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