What Is Treacher Collins Syndrome? Six-Year-Old Wants His Two Ears For Christmas

A 6-year-old boy who was born without ears due to a rare condition will undergo surgery to get one on Jan. 19 at Lenox Hill Hospital in Manhattan's Upper East Side.

Jared Galicia, who was born with the rare Treacher Collins syndrome, earlier had a surgery to get his right ear fixed.

The New Jersey boy said this year for Christmas he wished nothing more than having a pair of ears.

The National Institute of Health's website defines the syndrome as a “condition that affects the development of bones and other tissues of the face."

The website also defines various symptoms of the syndrome which vary from the unnoticeable to the severe. The report on the website states that the people who suffer from the syndrome have “underdeveloped facial bones, particularly the cheekbones, and a very small jaw and chin (micrognathia).”

In some cases, those with the syndrome have an opening in the roof of the mouth called a cleft palate since birth.

“In severe cases, underdevelopment of the facial bones may restrict an affected infant's airway, causing potentially life-threatening respiratory problems,” NIH writes.

Apart from this, people with the syndrome often have eyes that “slant downward, sparse eyelashes, and a notch in the lower eyelids called an eyelid coloboma.” In many cases, an additional abnormality or abnormalities could also cause the person to lose their vision.

Apart from affecting the eyes, the syndrome causes absent, small or unusually formed ears, with the hearing loss recorded in about half of the affected individuals.

The reason for the hearing loss is because of “defects of the three small bones in the middle ear, which transmit sound, or by underdevelopment of the ear canal."

People with Treacher Collins syndrome usually have normal intelligence.

According to New York Daily News, Galicia already had a surgery for his right ear and is supposed to undergo another for his second one in January. Reports state that once his surgeries are successfully completed he will finally be able to stop using the headband that holds his hearing aids in place. The device would then be anchored to his two new ears instead.

Galicia’s doctor, Thomas Romo, director of Facial Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery at Lenox, said, “He was born with no ears, no ear canals. His canal is full of bone. It would be like if your ear was completely full of wax and you couldn't hear.”

Romo told NY Daily News that during Galicia's first surgery he used cartilage from his ribs to build and attach his new ear. “I had to go into his chest, take three ribs out and carve it by hand during the procedure,” he said.

Speaking to NY Daily News, Galicia’s mother Sandra Gimenez said that her son was very happy with the positive results of his first surgery. “He always had long hair to cover his ears. After the first surgery, he cut his hair. His personality changed. Now, he's acting like a big guy. He changed the way he dresses,” she said.

Galicia’s doctor also said that after the surgery next year, he will also try and conduct procedures for filling Galicia's cheeks and chin. As of now, Galicia is a hopeful little boy who wants to be a doctor when he grows up or maybe a soccer player. In addition to that, he also wishes to work for Dunkin’ Donuts.