Denise Vicentin, 52, wouldn’t dare look at a mirror after skin cancer forced doctors to remove part of her jaw and her right eye. The surgery also hindered her ability to speak and eat. It became evident that she needed a prosthetic.
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At one point, she was told she get a hand-crafted prosthetic sculpted, but the cost was too high. What would the procedure cost? A whopping £384,000. Vicentin needed a cheaper option.
The 52-year-old Brazilian woman was eventually referred to researchers at Paulista University. And they developed a more affordable prosthetic in a super innovative way.
How did they save Vicentin’s face? Well, the team of researchers used a smartphone and a 3D printer to develop Vicentin’s missing piece! Crazy, right?
The doctors snapped just 15 photos of Vicentin’s face from a variety of angles. They loaded the photos to the computer, which created the missing piece.
The 3D version of her face was used as a guideline; they then crafted the real prosthetic with resin, synthetic fibres, and silicone. The best part? It only took 12 hours to make the final prosthetic!
The missing piece has helped to boost Vicentin’s self-confidence. She commented on the aftermath of the procedure,
'It was a long time looking at a face which was missing a piece, so I am so happy. I only took it off to clean it - I even slept with it.'
Want to know more about Vicentin’s journey to recovery? Tune into our video for more information and photos of the process!
