Madrid - Spanish doctors are preparing to perform the country's first face transplant operation, one of the first in the world, media reported Wednesday. Doctor Pedro Cavadas said he had two young candidates for the operation, one of whom has been disfigured by burns and the other by a disease.
The transplant would only cover the lower half of the face below the eyes. The medical team in the eastern city of Valencia was waiting for a suitable donor to appear.
The National Transplant Organization has given the green light to the operation. It still needs the approval of regional health authorities, which was regarded as a mere formality.
The world's first face transplant patient was French woman Isabelle Dinoire in 2005. Her operation has been followed by another in France and one in China.
