Carmen Tarleton is hardly a novice when it comes to adversity. In 2007, her estranged spouse assaulted her with a bottle of lye, leaving her with burns covering 85 percent of her body and permanently disfiguring her face beyond recognition. She suffered from discomfort for a number of years, particularly over her face and neck as the skin grafts became ever more constrictive.
The former transplant nurse found out on Valentine’s Day, six years ago, that a whole donor neck and face was now available. This was the news she had been waiting for all those years. However, her body started rejecting the face shortly after the arduous procedure that was performed at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. It was difficult for the doctors to figure out how to halt it. In a last-ditch effort to save her life, they gave her a very low dose of an anti-rejection medication in the form of a medical “Hail Mary.” Tarleton’s infection had been cleared up, and he was making progress in his recuperation.
She had very few aches and pains throughout her life, although she did have some difficulties.
Tarleton, who is now 51 years old, had a desire to kiss her partner, which she finally accomplished over the course of the last six years. She is the author of a book, was the star of a float in the Rose Parade honoring organ donors, gives talks on resiliency, has taught herself to play the banjo, and has become an involved grandmother.
However, there have been problems with the medical treatment. Tarleton went through many different bouts of rejection, all of which were successfully cured. In November of the previous year, she suffered a loss of vision that was mostly the effect of the original assault.
Tarleton’s face and neck were always supposed to have a limited lifetime, as is the case with the majority of donated organs; she anticipated that her face would survive anywhere between ten and twelve years. But around the beginning of August, Tarleton experienced a level of discomfort that she had not encountered before. Her face was red, swollen, and covered with blisters.
The physicians found that the deep veins that provide blood to Tarleton’s face were no longer circulating blood in the appropriate manner. This was the cause of Tarleton’s condition. Because of the reduction in blood supply, tissue was beginning to pass away. According to Tarleton, her lips do not come together anymore, she has lost some of the hair and eyebrows that were transplanted into her, and she has lost part of her left nostril.
The hope, though, that drove her to seek out the face transplant in the first place has never left her side.
“They were hoping for 10 to 12 years, but I went seven, and that’s pretty damn good.” Tarleton informed CNN by phone while she was at the residence of her boyfriend in Vermont. “It’s nothing more than a routine step in the process. I try to look on the bright side of everything. When I think about all they have improved upon and the unexplored seas they have navigated with me, it blows my mind. I simply paused and said, it’s really darn excellent.”
Tarleton has said that she is hopeful that she will be able to retain her present face, or at the very least that she will be able to do so until a replacement can be found. “This is my sincere wish, barring the occurrence of some terrible catastrophe,” the speaker said.
And in the event that this occurs, they could be forced to do grafts once again.
“I voluntarily agreed to do this; I don’t give much thought to the implications, and I don’t have any regrets. I am aware that I need to put my attention on moving on. I’ve had a difficult year, and there have been moments when I feel like giving up because the agony is just too much. But as a whole, I’m in good shape,” Tarleton said in a robust tone, adding a lighthearted chuckle at the conclusion.
At least 40 individuals in different parts of the globe have had face transplant surgery, with around 15 of those patients residing in the United States. According to a statement sent by the hospital to CNN, the physicians there are still working to determine what the next steps will be for Tarleton, “with the hope that the wounds will heal.” Other possibilities include…possibly undergoing a second face transplant after having the first one reevaluated.
CNN quoted Dr. Brian Gastman of the Cleveland Clinic, a cosmetic surgeon who has participated in three face transplants, as saying that since face transplantation is still a relatively young profession, “there’s no guarantee on how long a face will last.” Connie Culp, one of his patients, is the only one of his patients who still retains the face she received from her transplant 11 years ago.
Gastman predicts that in the not-too-distant future, advances in immunosuppressant medication will fundamentally alter the character of transplantation.
Once every two weeks, Tarleton makes the trip to the hospital in Boston on his own.
“I may be the biggest optimist there is, but it’s not easy. I have a lot yet to do. I would want to learn how to play the guitar so that I can entertain my grandkids. I hope to be in the vicinity. I am not yet prepared to turn it into cash.