Oregon toddler receives life-changing surgery to correct rare eye syndrome: ‘Sassier, more energetic’

A toddler recently received life-changing surgery after she suffered from droopy eyelids from the time she was born. 

Lily Etherton is a two-year-old from Salem, Oregon, who was born with blepharophimosis ptosis epicanthus inversus syndrome (BPES). 

The condition meant she was not able to open her eyes fully, according to SWNS. 

As Etherton grew and began walking, her parents Ashley and Erik Etherton said their toddler would easily fall and bump into things.

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"She kept getting hurt … always having bruises on her legs and bumps on her head," Ashley Etherton told SWNS. 

Ashley Etherton, a stay-at-home mom, said she'd often have to physically pull up her daughter’s eyelids so that the child could see. 

The parents decided that Lily Etherton needed surgery to help lift her eyes, as they grew concerned about her physical development and didn’t want her eye issue to delay anything.

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"It causes developmental delays and vision impairment [if] you’re walking, jumping [and] you’re learning to do things you need your eyes [for]," the mom told SWNS. 

In Sept. 2023, the Ethertons spoke with Dr. Ramon Medel, an orbital and lacrimal surgery specialist in Spain, about how they could help correct their daughter’s vision issues. 

Ashley Etherton said Medel offered to perform a non-FDA approved surgery on their daughter — so the family, with their daughter's best interests in mind, flew to Spain.

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The surgery cost tens of thousands of dollars, according to SWNS, and the Ethertons said it was all out of pocket for them — so the family felt forced to fundraise for the procedure, as they could otherwise not afford it. 

Ashley Etherton shared with others on the fundraising platform Go Fund Me that her daughter "lack[ed] the muscle development that is used to open your eyes, blink, close, etc."

Prior to the surgery, Ashley Etherton spent 40 hours a week for four months fundraising for the operation by making desserts to sell, holding benefit raffles and telling the community her daughter’s story. 

The Ethertons raised roughly $32,000 during that time — enough for the surgery, flights to Spain, the hotel stay and more, SWNS reported. 

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"I was so tired when the surgery came," Ashley Etherton recalled. 

The surgery was a success — and Ashley Etherton said Lily Etherton is now "sassier, sillier and more energetic."

Ashley Etherton told Fox News Digital that her daughter loves exploring "everything she can get her hands on" while noting her communication has also "positively exploded" since the surgery. 

"She doesn't have to choose if she needs to look at her feet or look where she is running anymore, as she can see both — which has saved her quite a lot of bumps and bruises," she added. 

The mother also said her daughter can "now cry actual tears," something she could not do before because her eye ducts were constricted.

She added, "She is healing so wonderfully [and] we are so proud of how resilient and just amazing she is."

The mom told SWNS that she plans to invest the remainder of the raised money to help Medel as he seeks FDA approval for the life-changing surgery he completed on her daughter. 

Fox News Digital reached out to surgeon Medel for additional comments and updates.

On TikTok, the mom shared with others about her daughter's improved eyesight, "Surgery made this possible. [She is now] able to see the world as we can."

She added, "Seeing more and preserving her vision was all we wanted to do."

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