Toddler with facial hair, no nostrils, captures Malaysian King and Queen’s attention
A toddler in Malaysia who was born with excessive facial and upper body hair and without nostrils was embraced as “a child from heaven” by the Malaysian King and Queen last week.
Two-year-old Missclyen Roland was waiting with her parents on Sept 10 to greet Sultan Abdullah Ahmad Shah and his consort, Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah, who were touring the eastern Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak.
They were among hundreds of people waiting for the royal couple in a village along Jalan Bintulu-Miri in Sarawak.
Missclyen’s parents Roland Jimbai, 49, and Theresa Guntin, 28, said they had always wanted to meet the royal couple, whom they had only seen on television and on social media.
Mr Roland said the five-hour wait was worth it – the King and Queen took pictures with Missclyen, with the Queen carrying and hugging the child.
“The King said, ‘Take good care of this child. She is a child from heaven… a blessing from God,’” the father, who works as a welder, said. He added that he was still at a loss for words over the royal encounter.
The father of four said Missclyen, his youngest child, was diagnosed with congenital generalised hypertrichosis, a rare disease characterised by excessive hair growth all over the body.
Hypertrichosis is sometimes referred to as werewolf syndrome.
She was also born without nostrils.
Despite Missclyen’s condition, Mr Roland said the toddler is healthy and goes for regular medical check-ups at the Bintulu Hospital.
Mr Roland said they had been stigmatised by people as a result of their child’s appearance.
Some even called her “ghost child”, causing them unnecessary hurt and stress. So her parents avoided taking her out in public, except for hospital follow-ups.
“We were so afraid of what people were going to say,” Mr Roland told local daily New Sarawak Tribune.
They have since overcome their fears and accepted that people are either curious or do not understand Missclyen’s condition.
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