The UTD Mercury

When UTD alumni Parya Etebari and Masoud Saman met at a coffee shop to discuss an upcoming Chance to Smile meeting, they met a seemingly shy 25-year-old man.

Etebari and Saman noticed the young man had surgical scars running bilaterally on his upper lip, typical of bilateral reconstructive cleft lip surgery.

The young man was born with a bilateral cleft lip and a complete cleft palate. His parents could not afford a reconstructive surgery, so his condition was left untreated until he was 11. He has had more than 10 surgeries and is still forced to eat and drink alone since foods and liquids regurgitate through his nose.

"The rage in this man's eyes was unforgettable. He expressed his anger towards his parents for not trying hard enough to provide for reconstructive surgery immediately after his birth," Etebari said. "For 25 years, the only thing on this young man's mind has been his noticeable condition and he was clearly still very emotionally affected by it."

Chance to Smile, a non-profit organization, was started by Etebari, a dental student, and Saman, a medical student at UT Health Science Center at San Antonio (UTHSCSA), in an effort to help children suffering from or born with a cleft lip and/or cleft palate.

The foundation aims to raise awareness about the facial developmental abnormalities of cleft lip and cleft palate, and to educate the public about these conditions in hopes of reducing the social stigma associated with them.

"Only one look at children with a cleft melts one's heart," Etebari said. "The facial anomalies are certainly noticeable and, although they represent two of the most common congenital abnormalities, they often go uncorrected."

The organization started in September 2006 and became registered as non-profit with the Internal Revenue Services (IRS) in December, and a chapter was established at the UTHSCSA in January 2007.

Etebari said, children born in developed countries with cleft lip or palate undergo reconstructive surgery immediately, or soon after birth. However, the families of countless children born with these conditions cannot afford to pay for reconstructive surgery.

"In many societies, they are tagged as 'possessed,' then shunned and isolated," Etebari said.

Chance to Smile is currently trying to develop multi-disciplinary, volunteer-run medical mission programs to provide the needy with cleft-repair surgeries free of charge. Additional services include an information portal for patients and families, as well as healthcare professionals who work with cleft lip and cleft palate.

"Despite the existence of other similar organizations, a significant number of children go without ever receiving reconstructive surgery," Etebari said. "In addition, the care of patients suffering from these conditions requires a multidisciplinary approach and we facilitate this by bringing different specialties together, including the departments of otolaryngology, pediatrics, orthodontics, maxillofacial and nursing."

Etebari and Saman are currently working with the IRS to make donations tax-deductible, along with getting financial support from different departments of the schools of medicine, dentistry and nursing that have joined the organization.

"The main help we need from people is not financial. We need help to raise awareness about these congenital anomalies," Etebari said. "Also, we need volunteers to help us in different activities, including fund raisers in Dallas and San Antonio in order to help the sufferers in need."

A Chance to Smile chapter can be created for any university across the United States.

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