“Elephant Girl” Ana Rodarte’s Incredible Surgical Journey

Ana Rodarte was a healthy baby but soon after her birth in Tecate, Mexico she developed facial tumors that grew rapidly until they completely distorted her features. At the age of 24, with the support of her parents Ismael and Margarita Rodarte, she finally made the decision to undergo a series of risky facial operations.

Ana, who lives with her parents in their La Jolla, California home (her family moved soon after she was born), has a severe case of neurofibromatosis. It is commonly known as “the elephant man’s disease” after one famous patients’ nickname, and it can cause uncontrolled tumor growth. In Ana’s case, the tumors appeared on her face and eventually grew so much that they completely covered one eye and obscured most of her features. The disease has no cure, but the tumors can be removed, and that’s what Ana finally decided to do after 24 years of living with them.

Dr. Munish Batra at Scripps Memorial Hospital, La Jolla, was the surgeon she and her parents chose, and he has now worked with Ana for three years, performing several major surgeries on her. Ana says she’s grown to trust him completely and chose him originally because, “He was friendlier [than other doctors]. He would explain things. He always gave me a chance to back out.”

For Dr. Batra’s part, he says that working with Ana has been the biggest challenge of his career, but that he is extremely pleased with the success they’ve had so far. Most importantly, Ana has maintained her health despite several major operations and is a lot more satisfied with her self-image than she was before the surgeries. Says her father, Ismael Rodarte, “She is happier now than she was before. Much happier.” She’s met (and dumped) a boyfriend, taken part in a black-tie gala for Dr. Batra’s non-profit, and is applying to beauty school to study cosmetology.

See Ana’s transformation through surgery

Isolated by her appearance, she yearned for a place in the world [LA Times]
Step by surgical step, a life is transformed [LA Times]

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