KUALA LUMPUR, May 12 — A Brazilian woman has been called Shrek’s Princess Fiona and even Pinocchio just because her nose got twice as big due to reconstructive surgeries to correct a birth defect.
Laudiane Fernandes, 42, from Alagoas, was born with haemangiomas, a collection of small blood vessels that form lumps under the skin in her nose, scalp and around her eyes, reported the Daily Mail.
The condition led to Fernandes to suffer from severe nose bleeds and seizures during childhood.
Following her diagnosis when she was 16, Fernandes underwent eight surgeries including one to remove a haemangioma from her nose that involved cutting into the skin and reshaping the nose.
The procedure however caused her nose to get infected and partially collapse.
To repair the damage, doctors had to perform a skin graft using part of the inside of Fernandes’s cheek.
While this helped her to breathe better, it also left Fernandes with a nose that was twice as big.
Although Fernandes underwent the procedure years ago, the beauty therapist continues to be taunted by mean people today.
“Sometimes I get comments from people online such as you look like Fiona from Shrek and only bulls have noses like that.”
Despite that, Fernandes thanked God that she still lives on to tell her story.
“I am not ashamed or feel inferior to anybody else due to the way I look and I believe that my condition has actually made me stronger and it will not deter me from living out my dreams.”
