18-Year-Old Left with Facial Paralysis After Life-Saving Tumor Surgery ‘Went Wrong’: ‘I Grieve My Old Looks’

Ella Tyman was diagnosed with a rare cancer at 18 after initially seeking treatment for an eye infection. However, surgery to remove the tumor left her with facial paralysis.

NEED TO KNOW

Ella Tyman was diagnosed with a rare cancer at 18 after initially seeking treatment for an eye infection

Surgery to remove the tumor left her with facial paralysis despite efforts, like Botox and exercises, to regain movement

Now cancer-free, Tyman is pursuing a degree in TV and radio studies and continues treatments to manage her paralysis

A young woman was left with facial paralysis after surgery to remove a tumor “went wrong.”

Ella Tyman — a student from Liverpool, England — was just 18 when she woke up in March 2023 with puffy and swollen eyes. Assuming she had an infection, she visited a walk-in clinic. While being examined, a doctor noticed a lump in her neck.

“I was a bit worried about my eye infection but I left with a whole new worry about the lump,” she told Southwest News Service (SWNS) in an interview published on Wednesday, Aug. 19. “I’m lucky he noticed it though, I hadn’t.”

Tyman was immediately referred to a local hospital due to concerns about the lump. Over the next five months, she underwent two CT scans, an ultrasound, an MRI and two biopsies.

In August 2023, she received the results of her biopsy and was diagnosed with parotid gland cancer — a rare tumor that develops on the largest salivary gland located just in front of the ear.

“Looking back it was scary, but at the time I just thought, ‘It’ll be okay, they’ll sort it.’ I just planned for university and my future and then it all went wrong,” she recalled, per SWNS.

Tyman underwent surgery to remove the tumor in September 2023. The procedure was expected to take about 45 minutes and only require a short recovery time.

“Having a cancer diagnosis was scary, but we were all expecting it to be a simple procedure and about a week to recover, so I was feeling okay,” she said.

However, during the surgery doctors discovered that the tumor had doubled in size and was now wrapped around her nerves, making it more complicated to remove.

Surgeons had to cut some of her facial nerves in order to remove the cancer, and she woke up to the left side of her face paralyzed.

“It was frightening,” Tyman admitted. “When I woke up I knew straight away. I could feel that my face wasn’t working. My face felt really odd and I could see in everyone’s faces that something really bad had happened while I’d been under the anesthetic.”

“I felt like my life was over in that moment; it was heartbreaking,” she continued. “I really felt for the surgeon too; she was really upset.”

Related Stories

Despite daily face exercises, regular Botox treatments and more surgery, Tyman has since only been able to regain 10% of movement in her face. With her face drooping on the left side, she said it took four months before she was even able to look at herself in the mirror or put makeup on.

“I signed the form about risks, but I didn’t think much about it. I just wanted the tumor out,” she said. “I hated the way I looked, and I worried so much about what people might say to me.”

However, she said, “I’m just so happy and grateful that she got the cancer out.”

In November 2023, Tyman underwent 33 rounds of proton therapy to eliminate remaining cancer cells, and she was declared cancer-free in January 2024.

“Proton therapy made me really ill, but I was cancer-free after that,” she told the outlet. “It felt like a weight lifted, and I was able to make a fresh start and start going out again.”

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

While finishing up her treatment, Tyman was able to enroll in classes at the University of Salford to pursue a degree in TV and radio studies.

“It was so scary meeting everyone. I was feeling very fragile,” she said. “It was horrible, but I would have felt worse if I’d kept sitting at home doing nothing.”

“I was so close to giving up university, but I was really excited about my course, and I wanted to meet new people,” she added. “I’m so glad I did it.”

Tyman, now 21, said her confidence has grown since going to school. She’s also continued treatment to help her facial paralysis. She has 30 Botox injections every three months to relax the muscles in her face and does special exercises and massages every morning.

In May 2026, Tyman also underwent a facelift where her jowls were moved and fat from her stomach was transferred to her face to fill in a gap. Although it’s still tough to manage, she said she’s proud of her progress.

“I still have down days when I worry about how I look, and I grieve my old looks, but I’ve come through this and I feel amazing,” she said. “If I can survive cancer at 18, then I can do anything.”

Lifestyle

Health