Mercedes Christensen, a 52-year-old woman from Idaho (USA), was diagnosed with a rare genetic condition called neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1), which causes numerous benign tumors to form under the skin and along the nerves. In her case, this condition manifested itself through an explosion of tumors, numbering approximately 200, most of them being located on the face.
Neurofibromatosis is a genetic disorder that causes tumors to form on nerve tissue. These tumors can develop anywhere in the nervous system, including the brain, spinal cord, and nerves.
Mercedes Christensen was diagnosed with this disease at the age of 19. “I had my first tumor at the age of 6, I thought it was a chicken pox scar. I had no other warning signs,” Christensen said Daily mail.
Mercedes Christensen, before and after having 200 tumors removed from her face. Photo source: Daily mail
When she was 19, the woman only had four or five tumors, so she decided to have one removed to find out what it was all about. “They told me it was nothing serious and to stay calm,” she said.
Although she only had a few tumors at the time of diagnosis, their number exploded after the birth of her youngest daughter, most of them on her face. “I hid like most people who have this disease. I would cover my face with my hair, look down and only leave the house to go to work,” Christensen said.
The doctors explained that it was probably the hormonal changes that occurred after giving birth that caused her condition to worsen so quickly.
Years later, she discovered she had passed the disease on to her daughters, now 27 and 24. The girls were diagnosed at the ages of six and three, respectively.
Mercedes Christensen. Photo source: Daily mail
Christensen admitted that her daughters’ diagnosis completely changed the way she related to her own illness: “After the girls were diagnosed, I realized that I couldn’t hide because my daughters would learn that what they have is shameful. I changed my perspective. I didn’t want them to be complicated by how they were going to look.”
Although her daughters show signs of the disease, they are not nearly as severe as their mother’s.
NF1 is the most common form of neurofibromatosis, affecting about one in 2,500 people worldwide, according to the Pediatric Tumor Foundation (CTF).
The face, where most of Mercedea Christensen’s tumors are located, has two complex networks of trigeminal nerves on each side. Tumors are usually benign, or non-cancerous, and are usually found on the surface or under the skin. Patients with NF1 may also have brown patches on their skin.
Christensen explained that “each person with NF will develop tumors at different ages and rates, or may have no visible tumors at all. They can grow internally, on organs. It’s progressive, it doesn’t go away by itself. They must be completely removed from the nerve end and this nerve end must be destroyed with electricity.”
Mercedes Christensen is married to Rodney, 58 years old. She said his husband gives her confidence and makes her feel beautiful, even with the tumors she has: “Rodney makes me feel beautiful, even with the tumors.”
Mercedes Christensen with her husband. Photo source: Daily mail
Christensen’s condition is a reminder that no two people experience exactly the same symptom or disease progression. Neurofibromatosis manifests differently from person to person, and Mercedes Christensen and her daughters are a clear example of this variability.
2023-07-24 18:10:08
#Woman #tumors #face #rare #disease #thought #signs #chicken #pox
