The doctors had never seen anything like him before. When a baby was born with a rare cleft deformity, even the child's family didn't want the mother to see him.
Kangkang was born with a transverse facial cleft. This made the babies smile crack up to his ears, and created the appearance as if he were wearing a mask of a second face.
When his mother, Yi Xilian, gave birth to him, she had to beg to see the baby boy. After doctors finally permitted her to, she completely broke down. There were no signs before the birth that her son would have any health issues — seeing his face completely caught her off guard.
While it is unclear what caused the transverse facial cleft, doctors say it could be anything from an infection in the embryo to taking medications during pregnancy.
See more of how this family grew to care for their precious son below.
H/T: Buzzfeed/ What's On Xiamen
When Yi Xilian and her husband discovered she was pregnant, the couple from the Hunan province in China had no reason their child would be anything but ordinary.
Multiple ultrasounds show that her baby boy was healthy. However, during Kangkang's birth in the delivery room, doctors and family would not let Yi see her newborn son.
"My family didn't allow me to see my son at the beginning, and I pleaded with my husband to let me have a look. Before they passed me the baby, they told me 'don't be sad, don't be sad', but when I saw my son, I collapsed," said Yi.
Kangkang was born with a congenital defect called transverse facial cleft. The now 14-month-old has been dubbed the "baby with two faces" or "mask face" baby.
Professer Wang Duquan, who treated Kangkang, said this case is unlike any other he has ever seen.
"It's different from a cleft lip or cleft palate; it's a facial cleft. Not only his face muscles are cleft, but the inside bones are cleft," Duquan said.
Duquan also noted that besides the facial cleft, Kangkang will develop normally in every other way.
While the surgeries required are expensive, the family has saved enough money to get the treatment they need. Kangkang will grow into happy, healthy little boy.
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