By Suzanne Stratford / Fox 8 News
LAKE COUNTY, Ohio (WJW) – A Lake County woman defies doctors simply by being alive. “As far as we know, I am the only known living person in the world with this condition,” said Kim Stenger.
Born prematurely, Stenger was diagnosed with an extremely rare genetic variation that left her unable to feel physical pain, touch, or temperature.
While hundreds of people are born unable to feel pain, Stenger is unable to feel anything at all. She also has no proprioception, meaning she lacks body awareness and a sense of orientation.
“They said she’s probably not going to survive, and if she does, she’ll be a vegetable,” said her father, Rick Stenger.
But Kim was also born with exceptional intelligence, and parents determined to never give up on her.
In this TV story, Professor Peggy Mason, PhD (Neurobiology), who studies Kim Stenger's condition, explains the extremely rare genetic variation that left her unable to feel physical pain, touch, or temperature. And Kim herself shows how she has managed not only to survive but thrive against all odds.