# What is this disease disorder or condition?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-disease-disorder-or-condition/688638>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [May 17, 2014, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-disease-disorder-or-condition/688638 "2014-05-17T16:23:33Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\
**Post date:** [May 17, 2014, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-disease-disorder-or-condition/688638/1 "2014-05-17T16:23:33Z")

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In my daughter’s dance class is a girl with a giant face. In every other respect she appears to be perfectly normal, but the lower half of her face–her cheeks, basically–is hugely swollen. She can talk and her mom understand her but because her lips seem unable to close her speech is very unclear.

Any idea what the name of this condition is?

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**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\
**Post date:** [May 17, 2014, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-disease-disorder-or-condition/688638/2 "2014-05-17T17:16:30Z")

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Like the kid from _Mask_?

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**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\
**Post date:** [May 17, 2014, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-disease-disorder-or-condition/688638/3 "2014-05-17T20:09:46Z")

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Anyone who’s considering Googling ‘giant face disease’ might wanna reconsider. Some very alarming pics. And, although one’s initial reaction may be to recoil, my alarm at least, skyrocketed when I considered for a second what it must be like for the victim. That some children suffer so, is, well, just heartbreaking.

BTW, might the girl in your daughter’s class have [neurofibromatosis](http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/neurofibromatosis/basics/definition/con-20027728) (ETA: as I now see **KneadToKnow** asked)?

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**Author:** ![Isilder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/cc9497/32.png) [@Isilder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isilder)\
**Post date:** [May 18, 2014, 10:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-disease-disorder-or-condition/688638/4 "2014-05-18T10:38:32Z")

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I thought a tumor would be too obvious as a tumor, and would be unlikely to be symmetric

Crouzon syndrome is connected to englargement of the lower jaw and too much cheek…

There are others. Apert, Pfeiffer, Saethre-Chotzen, Carpenter , and Treacher Collins syndromes  
cause deformed facial features… there are other signs that seem to exclude these other ones.

See [http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1280034-overview](http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1280034-overview)

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**Author:** ![cwthree](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9de0a6/32.png) [@cwthree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cwthree)\
**Post date:** [May 18, 2014, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-disease-disorder-or-condition/688638/5 "2014-05-18T16:00:51Z")

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Sounds like Cherubism (see [Cherubism - Wikipedia](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cherubism)), in which the bones of the lower face and jaw develop lesions that cause the bones to grow unusually large. The picture at the top of the Wikipedia article show a woman with mild Cherubism, but further down are x-rays of people with much more severe disease.

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**Author:** ![Pjen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Pjen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pjen)\
**Post date:** [May 18, 2014, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-disease-disorder-or-condition/688638/6 "2014-05-18T16:08:38Z")

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This woman suffering from Cherubism described how difficult it was on a programme broadcast last year  
[http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/facialdisfigurement/PublishingImages/Victoria-Wright-039\_377x171.jpg](http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/facialdisfigurement/PublishingImages/Victoria-Wright-039_377x171.jpg)