Vt. lye victim gets new face at Boston hospital (Update)

Carmen Blandin Tarleton's full facial transplant at Brigham & Women's Hospital included transplanting a female donor's facial skin to Tarleton's neck, nose and lips, along with facial muscles, arteries and nerves.

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Dr. Bodhan Pomahac, at podium, with his surgical team, speaks to reporters regarding the face transplant of Carmen Blandin Tarleton, pictured left, at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2013. Tarleton underwent the surgery earlier this month. The 44-year-old Tarleton,of Thetford, Vt., was attacked by her former husband in 2007. He doused her with industrial strength lye. She suffered chemical burns over 80 percent of her body. The mother of two wrote a book about her experience that describes her recovery.(AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Hospital officials say the 44-year-old Thetford, Vt., woman suffered burns on more than 80 percent of her body after her estranged husband attacked her.

Tarleton's sister said Wednesday she showed "great appreciation" for the gift she's been given.

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In this Aug. 20, 2008 file photo, Carmen Tarleton is interviewed in her home in Thetford, Vt. Tarleton, the Vermont woman whose face was disfigured in a lye attack received a face transplant. Doctors at Boston's Brigham and Women's Hospital say 44-year-old Tarleton underwent the surgery earlier in February, 2013. A team worked 15 hours to transplant the facial skin, including the neck, nose, lips, facial muscles, arteries and nerves. (AP Photo/Toby Talbot, File)

The donor's family believes their loved one's spirit lives on in Tarleton.

Tarleton has undergone more than 50 surgeries. The latest took 15 hours and included a team of more than 30 medical professionals.

Tarleton once worked as a transplant nurse.

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