Kriti Mehrotra
With TLC’s ‘Most Extreme Humans: Face to Face’ offering an unfiltered look into the lives of two individuals with Neurofibromatosis Type 1 (NF1), we get two tales of true resilience. After all, this distinct genetic disorder causes tumors on nerves throughout one’s body, resulting in them often having bone impairments, chronic pain, skin changes, and much more. These growths are typically benign, but a quickly growing abnormal mass on Elizabeth “Lizzy” Bull’s jaw did turn out to be cancerous a few years ago, turning her world upside down.
Lizzy Bull Has Had Over 100 Surgeries in Her Short Life
Born in 2004 in Burton-on-Trent in Staffordshire, England, to homemaker Nicola Bull and car manufacturer Gavin Bull, Elizabeth “Lizzy” Bull has always been the apple of her family’s eyes. Neither her parents nor her two brothers ever treated her as someone less than capable, but they all knew she was a lot more vulnerable owing to her Neurofibromatosis Type 1 diagnosis. As per records, her condition had mutated while she was still in the womb, leading her symptoms to be considerably greater than those of usual NF1 patients, especially around her face.
Lizzy was also diagnosed with congenital glaucoma at birth, a rare, genetic eye condition wherein abnormal development of the eye’s drainage system causes dangerous pressure buildup. Therefore, when she was in her mid-adolescence, she had an operation to put titanium plates above her eyes to manage the strain induced by the combination of her ailments, but to no avail. When she developed a tumor above her right eye, the tension evolved to such an extent that she completely lost her eyesight — she had vision one day at age 17, and she didn’t the next day.
Apart from the particular surgery for her eyes, Lizzy has admittedly undergone at least a hundred more procedures to manage the droopy, heavy tumors growing around her body and face. They are particularly centered around her head, so even with these operations, her facial structure has been altered to a large degree, and she now has extra skin covering both her eyes. Nevertheless, the young woman has managed to maintain a positive outlook on life, remaining determined to navigate the world with utmost confidence and courage at every step of the way.
Lizzy Bull Even Found Positives in Her Battle With Cancer
It was over Christmas 2021 when Lizzie realized the tumor on the right side of her jaw was expanding very quickly, driving her medical team to remove it by the time March 2022 rolled around. That’s when the 10-centimeter growth was biopsied and was found to be cancerous, which resulted in her adding another form of treatment to her routine to ensure her lasting overall health. The then-18-year-old underwent at least 3-6 months of intense chemotherapy and proton beam therapy to prevent the cancer from returning, which was really hard on both her mind and body.
The March surgery and ensuing recovery drained a lot of Lizzy’s energy as she was also still adjusting to her new normal as a visually impaired person, so the added treatment was even harder. However, she faced it with a smile because she knew that while she was going to lose all her long, glossy hair, she could experiment with several wigs and even get a bright pink one for fun. She wanted to maintain her zest for life even while battling cancer, so she created happy moments and found small positives before clinging to them with all she had until she went into remission.
Lizzy Bull Hopes to Lead an Independent Life One Day
While it’s true that Lizzy managed to graduate from high school and university despite all her medical needs, it wasn’t an easy journey as she had to relearn many things after losing her eyesight. There was once a time she could walk without aid, write, read, and lead a relatively independent life, even with her incurable NF1, but her entire world turned upside down at the age of 17. Instead of giving up, though, she learned Braille, developed language skills, got used to using technology for her studies, and relearned to walk with a stick to really embrace her new normal.
Therefore, now that Burton-on-Trent native Lizzy is 22 and has completed all her formal studies, it appears as if she hopes to start training in a profession/vocation she feels strongly about. She doesn’t really know how it would work as of yet, but she truly hopes to pursue a career as a child counselor and help them maintain a positive mindset even in the face of adversity. The young woman is an inspiration to many, and she will undeniably continue to be one as she now focuses all her energy on trying to become more independent than ever before.
Lizzy knows her parents or siblings can’t always be by her side, and she has dreams of having her own house, her own job, and her own family, so she is gradually learning to navigate daily life with minimal aid. She once candidly told Manchester Evening News, “I want to fall in love. I want everything anyone else has. It seems clichéd, but it’s what most of us want. I have never looked at myself in a negative way. I have tough days, but I just put on my big girl pants and get on with it. This is how I am, and if people don’t like it, they can jog on. I won’t change for anybody.”
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