Marlie Casseus
Encyclopedia
Marlie Casseus is a Haiti
an teenager who attracted national and international media attention when she received surgery to remove a 16-pound growth from her face that threatened her ability to eat, breathe, and see.
, a genetic condition in which the bone structure is replaced by connective tissue. This condition affects more than one bone in the body, impairs skeletal growth and development, and can cause deformity. The growth probably started when she was five to eight years old, but advanced until her facial features were completely disfigured. It blocked her nasal passage and most of her mouth so that she could only breathe and eat through one very narrow passage. Always a social impediment and a stigma, the growth eventually prompted her to become completely reclusive to avoid public ridicule. Before surgery, the bone growth had become a 16-pound tumor
-like mass that covered almost her entire face. It was threatening her breathing and would have eventually caused blindness if doctors hadn't operated.
, a program of the Jackson Memorial Foundation, when her parents heard about a previous case in which IKF helped save a girl with a facial tumor. All surgeries were performed at the Holtz Children’s Hospital, at the University of Miami
/Jackson Memorial Medical Center in Miami, Florida. The first surgery, in mid-December, 2005, was a 17-hour procedure that resulted in the removal of much of the growth from both sides of her face. During subsequent surgeries, doctors inserted and replaced a titanium
plate in her jaw, rebuilt the interior of her nose and jaw, and drew her eyes and lips back together. Other bones were replaced with titanium and polyethylene implants.
After her initial surgeries, doctors indicated that Casseus might require further cosmetic surgeries at a later date, but indicated her growth would not return. Marlie has since had additional surgeries to rebuild her facial structure, center her eyes and remove her tracheotomy
. After a succession of surgeries and a recuperation process, Marlie was allowed to return to her home of Port-au-Prince, Haiti in December 2006.
In June 2009, the International Kids Fund flew Marlie back to the United States for a seventh surgery to remove excess scar tissue and replace her facial implants. She will require follow-up surgeries and as such, the International Kids Fund continues to raise money for her medical care.
Marlie's journey was first documented on the Discovery Channel. Since then, her story has also been featured as an hour-long documentary on Discovery en Espanol's "Extraordinary Stories." A follow-up to the original Discovery Channel documentary was aired in September 2009.
A Haitian non-profit named Good Samaritan helped with transportation costs and the hospital's International Kids Fund collected donations for the surgery. Doctors and surgeons donated their time.
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
an teenager who attracted national and international media attention when she received surgery to remove a 16-pound growth from her face that threatened her ability to eat, breathe, and see.
Background
Casseus suffers from polyostotic fibrous dysplasiaMcCune-Albright syndrome
McCune–Albright syndrome, described in 1937 by Donovan James McCune and Fuller Albright, is a genetic disorder of bones, skin pigmentation and hormonal problems along with premature puberty.-Symptoms:...
, a genetic condition in which the bone structure is replaced by connective tissue. This condition affects more than one bone in the body, impairs skeletal growth and development, and can cause deformity. The growth probably started when she was five to eight years old, but advanced until her facial features were completely disfigured. It blocked her nasal passage and most of her mouth so that she could only breathe and eat through one very narrow passage. Always a social impediment and a stigma, the growth eventually prompted her to become completely reclusive to avoid public ridicule. Before surgery, the bone growth had become a 16-pound tumor
Tumor
A tumor or tumour is commonly used as a synonym for a neoplasm that appears enlarged in size. Tumor is not synonymous with cancer...
-like mass that covered almost her entire face. It was threatening her breathing and would have eventually caused blindness if doctors hadn't operated.
Surgeries and post-op
Marlie became a patient of the International Kids FundInternational Kids Fund
International Kids Fund, is a non-profit, philanthropic program of Jackson Memorial Foundation committed to helping critically ill children primarily from Latin America and the Caribbean gain immediate access to essential medical treatments that are unavailable in their respective home...
, a program of the Jackson Memorial Foundation, when her parents heard about a previous case in which IKF helped save a girl with a facial tumor. All surgeries were performed at the Holtz Children’s Hospital, at the University of Miami
University of Miami
The University of Miami is a private, non-sectarian university founded in 1925 with its main campus in Coral Gables, Florida, a medical campus in Miami city proper at Civic Center, and an oceanographic research facility on Virginia Key., the university currently enrolls 15,629 students in 12...
/Jackson Memorial Medical Center in Miami, Florida. The first surgery, in mid-December, 2005, was a 17-hour procedure that resulted in the removal of much of the growth from both sides of her face. During subsequent surgeries, doctors inserted and replaced a titanium
Titanium
Titanium is a chemical element with the symbol Ti and atomic number 22. It has a low density and is a strong, lustrous, corrosion-resistant transition metal with a silver color....
plate in her jaw, rebuilt the interior of her nose and jaw, and drew her eyes and lips back together. Other bones were replaced with titanium and polyethylene implants.
After her initial surgeries, doctors indicated that Casseus might require further cosmetic surgeries at a later date, but indicated her growth would not return. Marlie has since had additional surgeries to rebuild her facial structure, center her eyes and remove her tracheotomy
Tracheotomy
Among the oldest described surgical procedures, tracheotomy consists of making an incision on the anterior aspect of the neck and opening a direct airway through an incision in the trachea...
. After a succession of surgeries and a recuperation process, Marlie was allowed to return to her home of Port-au-Prince, Haiti in December 2006.
In June 2009, the International Kids Fund flew Marlie back to the United States for a seventh surgery to remove excess scar tissue and replace her facial implants. She will require follow-up surgeries and as such, the International Kids Fund continues to raise money for her medical care.
Marlie's journey was first documented on the Discovery Channel. Since then, her story has also been featured as an hour-long documentary on Discovery en Espanol's "Extraordinary Stories." A follow-up to the original Discovery Channel documentary was aired in September 2009.
A Haitian non-profit named Good Samaritan helped with transportation costs and the hospital's International Kids Fund collected donations for the surgery. Doctors and surgeons donated their time.