Dr. Andrew Jacono’s Surgical Missions Have Reached 750 Children
More than 750 children in developing regions have received free reconstructive surgery through the international missions led by Dr. Andrew Jacono. The New York facial plastic surgeon typically travels twice a year, partnering with organizations including Healing the Children, the HUGS (Help Us Give Smiles) Foundation, and THAI Children to reach families with no other access to specialized care.
The conditions treated on these trips vary widely. Dr. Andrew Jacono has operated on children with cleft lip and cleft palate, microtia, facial tumors, and burn scars, addressing both the physical function and the visible appearance those conditions affect. A cleft lip, for example, can keep a child out of school or away from community life long before it causes any medical complication.
Destinations Across Three Continents
His missions have taken him to Colombia, Ecuador, Thailand, Vietnam, and other countries where families often cannot afford or access surgical treatment. Dr. Andrew Jacono frequently brings other surgeons along on these trips, and family members have joined him as well, expanding the number of children each mission can treat.
Beyond Eating and Breathing
Many of the deformities Dr. Jacono addresses cause functional problems such as difficulty eating or breathing, but the social cost can be just as steep. Children living with an untreated facial difference often face stigma severe enough to isolate them from peers and limit their opportunities.
To help fund the logistics of these missions, Dr. Jacono has taken on physical challenges of his own, climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, Cotopaxi, and Mount Elbrus as part of awareness and fundraising campaigns. The money raised supports both his pediatric missions abroad and his domestic work with survivors of violence in the United States.
As Fellowship Director for the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Dr. Jacono also passes this model of service to trainees, teaching surgeons in his field to see humanitarian missions as an extension of surgical skill rather than a separate calling. Refer to this article to learn more.
Like for more about Dr. Andrew Jacono on https://www.instagram.com/drjacono/?hl=en