Kobe Battles for Life with a Smile

Resource Pack for: Kobe Battles for Life with a Smile by Kate Saunders

Created by Natasha Derry

Context

At the time the article was written, Kobe was a boy aged 18 months old who had been born with a congenital disorder known as Treacher Collins Syndrome. To follow is a snippet from the article which describes the effects of this syndrome and some of what Kobe and his parents have been through in his short life:

“Kobe was born with a moderate to severe form of Treacher Collins Syndrome, a rare craniofacial condition which means he has an underdeveloped jaw and cheek bones and no outer ears. He wears a bone-anchored hearing aid, has had part of his skull used to start rebuilding his cheekbones and is no stranger to heavy pain relief.”