Woman With Almost 6,000 Tumors Just Wants To Be Loved And Accepted For Who She Is

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Libby Huffer was diagnosed with Neurofibromatosis Type 1, a rare skin disease that causes non-cancerous lumps when she was five years old.

Her shocking condition has left her with nearly 6,000 tumours covering her entire body.

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She carried on with a cheerful, typical life until her high school years when several bumps began to develop on her skin.

She was extremely bullied by individuals who thought she was infectious and unfeelingly marked her 'Reptile Breath.'labeled her 'Lizard-Breath.'

The comments were so bad, she changed her name from Elizabeth to Libby to avoid the painful reminder of the bullying.

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In 1993, while pregnant with her little girl, Libby's hormones made her tumors duplicate into the thousands.

She has more than 5,500 tumors from her forehead to her feet and suffers severe pain.

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Regardless of ten operations to expel the lumps, surgery has failed and a portion of the tumors have even grown back.

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She is bravely showing her skin in the expectation of collecting some fund for the treatment.

Libby, a keen photographer said:

The tumours can grow from any nerve in my body, there must be over 5,500.

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I call myself a bumpy person as some of the tumours rise up a couple of inches in size above my skin and look like bumps, the older I get the bigger they will become and more will grow.

I tell children that I've been kissed by angels and they don't say anything, but most adults don't know what the condition is so I have to explain it.

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The tumours all over my back cause chronic pain, the nerves in my feet have a tingling sensation all the time which makes it hard to sleep, even though I'm on 13 different medications.

They can even hurt from simple things like a hug or even if water hits them in a certain way.

I've been bullied and victimized my whole life because of the bumps all over my skin, they cover me from head to toe.

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For the majority of my life I've covered up in long-sleeved tops and trousers, but recently I've tried being brave by showing more of my skin.I try not to let it stop me.

Someday it would be wonderful not to have to worry about how I look, or what clothes will hide my bumps.

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Libby's last hope is after specialist treatment to crush a large number of the tumors in a five-hour session.

Libby has started raising money for pioneering electrodes siccation surgery that will use an electric current to kill the neurofibroma tissue in her body.

The five-hour session costs almost £17,500 and could allow her a pain-free life without the stares and taunts from people for the first time in three decades.

She added: ‘My life would change so much if I had the surgery. I'm not contagious, I'm a human being too, all I want is to be adored and cared for like anyone else.'

Libby is fundraising at: www.gofundme.com/libbysnfsurgery