The little boy whose facial features were divided by a rare skull condition — doctors feared he might only have days to live.

At 20 weeks into the pregnancy, an ultrasound revealed that Mark and Mary Gundrum were expecting a baby boy they planned to name Dominic. However, doctors also delivered unexpected news: his skull had not fused together as it should during development, leaving a large opening.

This rare condition affected the development of Dominic’s face, causing his mouth, nose and forehead to appear divided. Fluid from inside his skull had also moved through the opening, forming a golf-ball-sized mass on his face. The condition is known as encephalocele.

It was an extremely rare case. Doctors warned that Dominic might only survive for a few days after birth. “At first, we thought he might not make it beyond a few hours after delivery, so we wanted to make the most of the time we had during the pregnancy,” his father recalled.

But refusing to give up hope for their unborn son, the Gundrum family began searching the internet and every available source for information about Dominic’s condition. They discovered a similar case involving a boy named Dumanel, who was born in Haiti with a severe encephalocele and had successfully received treatment from Dr. John Meara, a surgeon, and Dr. Ed Smith, a neurosurgeon at Boston Children’s Hospital.

They immediately contacted the medical team. “I will never forget when Dr. Meara called and told us he had treated a similar case before and that everything would be okay,” Mary recalled emotionally.

Dominic was born without any additional complications. His first procedure involved removing excess fluid and tissue from the affected area. This important operation was performed by Dr. Mark Proctor. Next, Dr. Meara would lead the reconstruction of Dominic’s face, repairing the opening and carefully correcting the affected facial structures.

Working alongside more than 15 dedicated surgeons, the medical team spent nine hours in surgery. When the procedure was finally over, Dominic had a reconstructed face, bringing overwhelming happiness and relief to his family.

However, his journey did not end there. Dominic would continue receiving close medical monitoring as he grew to ensure that no complications developed along the way.