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Photos by Michelle Van Vliet Marwa Naim before and after her surgeries

Iraqi girl heads home after UCLA plastic surgeons make her face whole again

BY AMY WADDELL
UCLA Today

A brave and beautiful young girl, 12-year-old Marwa Naim lost most of her nose and thumb when a bomb exploded near her Baghdad home three years ago. She even stopped going to school because other children teased her.

Now, Marwa’s life has been transformed.

After four months in Los Angeles undergoing a series of dramatic reconstructive surgeries at UCLA Medical Center, Marwa recently returned home to Iraq to be with her family, her face restored.

“I want to thank the doctors,” said Marwa through an interpreter at a press conference held before her departure. “They made me look much better.”

“When we heard about Marwa’s condition, we immediately wanted to help in any way we could,” explained Timothy Miller, chief of plastic and reconstructive surgery at UCLA Medical Center.

“We have had considerable experience in reconstructing noses from both traumatic injuries and following the removal of large skin cancers from the nose.”

The blast, which killed Marwa’s mother, left her without a nasal tip or cartilage.

With very little skin to work with, Miller and George Rudkin, assistant professor of plastic surgery, used a fascinating centuries-old technique to rebuild her nose.

In a series of four outpatient surgeries that began in February and concluded in late May, doctors transferred a flap of skin from her forehead and folded it down to create a new nose. The shape of the tip was achieved by using grafts of cartilage taken from Marwa’s ear. In the last two procedures, scar revisions and aesthetic refinements were made.

Marwa, who traveled alone from Iraq, stayed with volunteer host families while here. Translator Theresa Moussa, an international patient coordinator with UCLA Medical Center, watched over her like a big sister and played a key role in making her extended stay enjoyable.

Photo by Michelle Van Vliet Marwa Naim with doctors George Rudkin and Timothy Miller

“I will miss Marwa very much, but I know she will be much happier back home with her dad, sisters and brother,” said Moussa. “She will always be on my mind.”

Marwa’s long journey to Los Angeles was arranged through the efforts of several humanitarian organizations, including the Campaign for Innocent Victims in Conflict, International Relief and Development and The Palestine Children’s Relief Fund. UCLA’s Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery agreed to cover the costs of her reconstructive surgery and UCLA’s Department of Dermatology donated her laser treatments.

In between her surgeries, Marwa’s visit to Los Angeles was filled with new experiences. She started learning English, visited the beach, the L.A. Zoo and SeaWorld, learned to ride a bike, played basketball, ran and swam.

“I came to Los Angeles, America, for surgery, and I am very happy to meet all of you, and I wish you to help other kids from all over the world like you helped me,” Marwa commented to the press before her departure.

“She’s got a great spirit,” Miller said.