Child Born With A 'Second Face' Defies All Medical Odds And Reaches His 13th Birthday

Feb 07, 2019 by apost team

Sometimes life gives us challenges that we may not understand. Although everyone has their own difficulties to face, some are a little more unique than others. When Brandy and Joshua Johnson decided to have their third child, there was nothing that could prepare them for the hardships that their baby was about to face.

Their baby was about to be born with a very rare disorder, one that they’d never heard of before.

This came as a shock to the parents, as they had not been warned by their doctors about anything abnormal during their ultrasounds of the child.

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Their son, Tres, was born with two separate faces. The boy has a big cleft, his eyes are spaced further than normal, he has two entirely different noses, and his head isn’t shaped like a human's would traditionally be. Tres was born in Bernie, Missouri and ended up being diagnosed with a condition called craniofacial duplication. This unique disorder is caused by a protein called SHH, the protein responsible for changing the entire formation of not only the face but the skull as well.

There are only 36 known cases of cranial duplication in the entire world, so Tres is a unique individual. However, that doesn’t put an end to Tres’s health issues. He also deals with delays in cognitive ability as well as occasional seizures.

Although many people who have this condition are actually stillborn, Tres defied the odds. Doctors were not optimistic when he was born, and gave the boy a survival rate of 0%. As the boy grew older and older, the doctors kept warning his parents that there was no way he could survive much longer with this condition.

However, despite all the odds and challenges that life has given him, Tres has survived an amazing 13 years so far! Throughout his life, he has gone through surgeries and operations that aim to reshape his head, skull, eliminate seizures, and reduce his cleft.

But the road hasn’t been easy. His family has gone through bullying and abuse from people, who even go as far as to tell his parents that he needs to be put down.

However, his parents will never give up on him, and his story is an inspiration to everyone.

We hope Tres goes on to live a long and happy life! You can learn more about his story in the video below. What do you think about Tres and his condition?