"Upstate Teen Recovering After Malformation Removal" - Nickelle Smith
A Spartanburg, SC teenager is recovering after a life-changing surgery. 16 year old Isaac Hayes said the growth on the left side of his face hurt physically and emotionally. While searching online for help last November, Isaac’s mother found a story of a boy like him who had his malformation removed by Gregory Levitin, MD, director of vascular birthmarks and malformations at the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai. ” Immediately when I noticed his photo I realized this was a vascular malformation - a venous malformation - but more importantly it was going to be a difficult one to treat but one that I treated before and I could offer that same service to Isaac,” said Dr. Levitin. “It’s a less common type of vascular birthmark but essentially it is dilated veins. While it’s not a cancer – it invades the tissues like a cancer – so essentially invades the skin, the fat, the muscle and the bone – the full thickness of the face.” Dr. Levitin said he’s glad they were able to operate on Isaac at this young age. He said he was able to do one operation, reconstruct Isaac’s entire face into a normal contour and feels the contour will be 80 percent - 95 percent normal compared to the other side of his face.
— Gregory M. Levitin, MD, Senior Faculty, Otolaryngology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Director, Vascular Birthmarks and Malformations, New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai
Additional coverage: WYFF News; Fox News Carolina; WCBD News