Baby Girl’s Growing Forehead Tumor Left Her Eye Drooping — Until Her Mother Found Hope Thousands of Miles Away

For little Avani Hakim, the first months of life brought challenges no parent could have imagined. Born in Trinidad and Tobago, the baby girl developed a hemangioma on her forehead that grew rapidly, changing the appearance of her face and affecting the area around her eye.

Her mother, Uyjanti, desperately wanted to help her daughter. But after struggling to find someone locally who could perform the necessary surgery, she began searching for answers beyond her home country.

A Small Growth That Became a Major Concern

Avani’s family received her hemangioma diagnosis shortly after she was born. Initially, the growth was small, and the family was advised not to intervene.

However, it continued expanding. Her forehead became increasingly swollen, while her eyebrow and eyelid began to droop.

For her mother, watching the condition progress was distressing. Strangers also began staring and making comments about her daughter’s appearance.

A Mother’s Search for Someone Who Could Help

Uyjanti tried to find a surgeon in Trinidad and Tobago, but her efforts were unsuccessful.

Determined not to give up, she turned to social media, where a Facebook group of mothers helped connect her with a specialist in vascular birthmarks in New York City.

That connection eventually led the family to Dr. Gregory Levitin at the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai.

After evaluating Avani’s condition, he agreed to operate, planning to remove the hemangioma while simultaneously reconstructing her forehead.

A Delicate Operation With Unexpected Challenges

At just 18 months old, Avani traveled with her mother to New York for the procedure.

The surgery lasted approximately two hours, but doctors encountered an unexpected challenge. Once the initial incision was made, the vascular tumor expanded dramatically.

The growth had extended deep into the underlying muscle and contained two substantial feeding vessels, making its removal particularly delicate.

Surgeons needed to remove the abnormal tissue while protecting the muscles responsible for Avani’s facial expressions.

Despite these difficulties, the operation was successful. According to Mount Sinai, blood loss was minimal, and the surgical team preserved the underlying facial musculature.

A New Chapter for Avani and Her Mother

After months of uncertainty, Uyjanti finally saw her daughter recovering from the surgery she had fought so hard to obtain.

Standing beside Avani in the recovery room, the relieved mother expressed her belief that her little girl could achieve everything her heart desired.

The transformation was more than a change in appearance. The procedure addressed a growing medical condition that had threatened to leave lasting changes to Avani’s facial tissues.

Her journey illustrates the determination of a mother who refused to stop searching for help, and the importance of connecting families facing complex childhood conditions with specialized medical care.

Source: Mount Sinai — Trip of a Lifetime: 18-month Old Comes to NYEE to Remove a Giant Hemangioma.