A mother whose massive facial tumor left her barely able to eat or breathe is now living a normal life, thanks to the charity work of surgeons aboard a ship.

Mabouba first noticed the facial tumor in her teenage years and, as she grew older, her condition rapidly worsened.

By 2014, the tumor was so big that it began blocking her oesophagus and windpipe—leaving her unable to swallow anything more than bits of rice, egg and bread, and struggling for air during the night.

Sadly, emergency surgery in Ghana didn't help, after the 29-year-old nearly lost her life on the operating table.

But, thanks to the arrival of Mercy Ships, a charity which provides medical care, she is now living a happy life.

Mercy Ships operates the largest non-governmental hospital ship in the world, transporting hundreds of volunteer health professionals to more than 57 developing nations. Since 1978, the Christian-based charity has performed over 100,000 life-saving surgeries—and trained 42,000 local nurses and doctors in modern procedures. while the ship at port.

"I remember when I woke up I was completely transformed," said Mabouba. "I was a new person."

Her family had previously collected money from uncles, grandparents, and cousins, to send Mabouba to Ghana for emergency surgery, but upon arrival, she was informed they needed to remove some teeth before completing the surgery—an operation that went horribly wrong.

Then the family learned that the hospital ship, Africa Mercy, was scheduled to dock in Togo and Mabouba would be seen.

"Those days my mind was always preoccupied with the tumor," she said. "Day and night I could think of little else."

Once on board, the surgeons were determined to do everything they could for her, and after nine hours of surgery they successfully removed the tumor.

Today, Mabouba is a seamstress in her own tailor shop and mother to a five-year-old daughter. She also recently celebrated getting married to a man she met one day outside a bank—and says it was love at first sight.

"I used to think I wasn't beautiful, and that I would never get married. If I hadn't had this operation, I don't know what would have happened to me.

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"That's why I give thanks to those great people who gave me this life."

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