Transplant doctor denies woman tried suicide
(AP)
Updated: 2005-12-06 09:04

The partial face was donated by the family of a woman who was declared brain dead. Her identity also has not been made public.

But the Sunday Times, citing unidentified doctors, said the donor was a 38-year-old woman who had hanged herself. Dubernard and French officials refused to discuss specifics.

"I don't see what the problem is, whether she was hit by a car or committed suicide," said Carine Camby, head of a Health Ministry agency that coordinates organ procurement. She refused to say how the donor died.

The transplant patient's severe facial injuries made it difficult for her to speak and eat, her doctors have said. But they have given conflicting information about when the mauling occurred: One statement from the hospital said May, another June.

Neighbors said the woman was an animal lover who bought a smaller dog after the attack. Her Labrador was put down.

Many in her modest housing complex of small, red-and-white apartment buildings in Marly, 120 miles northeast of Paris, did not realize the woman's face had been mutilated. They did not want to pry — and only learned of her story from news reports about the transplant.

"Every evening, I saw her out walking, wearing a mask," said Belgassem Kahouri, a 57-year-old neighbor. "I assumed she had an allergy or some problem breathing, maybe trouble with pollution."

Moossa al-Karkouri, a 20-year-old student, said: "She did not speak to people much, except maybe to say 'bonjour.'"

The patient's mother declined to be interviewed, saying she was overwhelmed by the attention to the case and worried about the effect it would have on her two granddaughters.

One of the patient's daughters reportedly told French media that the dog tried to wake her mother and had no intention of harming her — a scenario that a local dog trainer said was probable.

"The dog undoubtedly wanted to re-establish contact with his master, in any way he could," said Pascal Duplouy, who had no contact with the animal in question.

"When a dog is in a state of panic, it can scratch and scratch and scratch his master's face, to try to wake her, without realizing the harm it's doing," he said.