Firefighter Patrick Hardison gets world’s most extensive face transplant

A fellow firefighter suggested that Hardison consider face transplant surgery in 2012, which is how Hardison was connected with Dr. Eduardo Rodriguez, who was at the University of Maryland at the time before he eventually joined the NYU Langone Medical Center’s Hansjörg Wyss Department of Plastic Surgery.

Surgeons in the U.S. say they have carried out the world’s most expensive surgery which includes a face transplant- including the scalp, ears and eyelids.

In September 2001, 27-year-old volunteer firefighter Patrick Hardison was in search of a woman who was believed to be trapped in a house that was on fire in his small MS town. He lost his eyelids, ears, lips, most of his nose and hair in the accident while his entire face, head, neck, and upper torso became disfigured by burns.

Since then, more than 20 other patients have received partial or full face transplants at institutes across the globe. He also received new eyelids and the muscles that control blinking, as he was previously unable to close his eyes completely.

Hardison will have to take anti-rejection drugs for the rest of his life to keep his body from rejecting the transplanted tissue. Hardison’s new face, particularly his new lips and ears, were robust with color, indicating circulation had been restored. More than 100 doctors, nurses, technical and support staff took part in the 26-hour operation, conducted in mid-August at the NYU Langone Medical Center, the center announced.

In the meantime, Hardison will undergo more surgeries to ideal his face as the swelling goes down.

A year later, Rodebaugh was identified as a potential donor by LiveOnNY, the nonprofit organization that seeks transplant organs and tissue in the NY City area. The donor was a young BMX cyclist from OH named David Rodebaugh, whose family donated his liver, kidneys, and both eyes to help other patients.

His face was “one huge scar”, Rodriguez said. The team also removed bone around the nose and chin, so Rodebaugh’s face would perfectly fit Hardison, Rodriguez explained.

In an unusual move, the name of the donor of the face and scalp was made public.

Three months after the procedure, which cost one million dollars, father-of-five Mr Hardison has revealed he hopes to start driving again.

Doctors were able to save his life, but they were not able to save his burned face. “I never thought I would be sitting here today after a face transplant”.

When random children would see him, they “ran screaming and crying when they saw me”.

Hardison in a statement thanked his donor’s family, saying, “I hope they see in me the goodness of their decision”. With his new eyelids and more surgery, he’s expected to regain a normal field of vision for the first time in more than a decade.