Esther

For the past two and a half weeks, I have been working in Maxillo-facial surgery here on the ship.  It has been so great to be back in a service that I am familiar with.  However, the surgeries done here on the ship are so extreme compared to the surgeries at home.  The surgeries are very interesting, and even better, the Maxillo-facial surgeon here on the ship is one of the best I have ever worked with.  Before I met him, people compared him to Jesus.  I doubted that was true considering he is a surgeon, but it is true!  If every surgeon were like him, there would not be a lack of OR nurses! 

One extreme example of a complicated surgery was Esther.  She was a 16 year old female and had a mandibular and maxillary tumor that had been growing since she was three months old.  Because she did not have any access to healthcare, a tumor that would have been removed when she was an infant continued to grow for 16 years.  This tumor was on the top 5 biggest tumors Mercy Ships has ever removed!  

To say this was an interesting case would be an understatement.  It was a long and complicated surgery, but once it was finished, she looked completely different.  She is having a hard recovery, so if you think about it, say a prayer for her.


I have more pictures of her and her surgery, but for her privacy and the non-medical people's viewing pleasure, I am not going to post it here on the blog.  I will share when I get home.  :)