Isabelle Dinoire, who received the world's first face transplant, died on April 22 at the age of 49. The news of Dinoire's death wasn't announced immediately in accordance with her relatives' request and no obituary note was published as well.
The Frenchwoman underwent a partial face transplant surgery in 2005, six months after being mauled by her pet dog, a Labrador. Dinoire received a triangular face graft comprising the lips, chin and nose from a 38-year-old brain-dead donor.
A 50-member team led by French surgeons Dr. Jean-Michel Dubernard and Dr. Bernard Devauchelle performed the 15-hour-long experimental surgery at Amiens Picardie hospital. The face transplant procedure invited a lot of concerns because of the risk involved, and because facial reconstructive surgery was considered the safest and most convenient option.
As of now, no official information on the cause of Dinoire's death was released but the French media has it that the 49-year-old faced a lot of complications, including losing her lip movement in 2015.
Dinoire also suffered two cancers as a result of prolonged intake of antirejection pills. In 2006, Dinoire suffered a rejection episode marked by swelling and redness on her face, which prompted the doctors to increase the doses of antirejection medication.
Dinoire, who was survived by her two daughters Lucie and Laure, was criticized for drinking and chain smoking soon after the surgery. Moreover, her mental state was reportedly not stable both before and after the operation.
The divorced mother of two admitted that she had taken several sleeping pills to commit suicide and was asleep for a long time on the sofa when the dog mauled her face. She noticed the blood and her dog lying nearby once after she tried to light a cigarette.
Oddly, the brain-dead donor whom she received the graft from reportedly hanged herself.
When Dinoire came to know that her donor killed herself, she said that her "twin sister" who also wanted to die saved her life. Dinoire said a couple of years after the surgery that it was tough for her to accept someone else's lip and it was "odd" to feel her mouth with her tongue.
"It may be someone else's face but when I look in the mirror, I see me," Dinoire told People in a December 2006 interview, adding, "There have been problems. But I am getting on with my life."
