PRINCESS Mchunu is only nine years old and has already had seven life-changing surgeries.
In this episode of Just Skin Deep, Gomie Seabi speaks to Princess, her mother Sylvia Mchunu, and the CEO of the Smile Foundation, Kim Robertson Smith.
Princess recalls her most recent surgery in May 2023 and shares how these surgeries have changed her life.
The young girl was born with a bilateral cleft lip and palate in 2013. It is a common birth condition that results in openings or splits in the roof of the mouth and lip. It makes feeding and speaking a challenge.
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She had her first reconstructive surgery when she was just four months old to help alleviate the symptoms.
The Smile Foundation has helped more than 4 000 disadvantaged children with facial abnormalities, such as Cleft Lip and Palate, Moebius syndrome (facial paralysis) and burns, receive corrective plastic and reconstructive surgery.
Princess says while she faces bullying that leaves her in tears, with her mum's help, she has learnt to rise above it.
Princess is due to undergo her eighth procedure towards a new and improved smile.
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The Smile Foundation shares how South Africans can access their services as well as donate to their cause and assist them to help more children in need.
Catch a brand new episode of Just Skin Deep? every Wednesday – a podcast about the transformative power of plastic and reconstructive surgery and its impact on people's lives.
