\nI survived the first face and hand transplant \u2014 now I\u2019ve found love\n
He\u2019s finally found someone to hold his hand.\n
The first person to ever undergo a successful face and double hand transplant surgery has found love three years after his miracle operation.\n
Joe DiMeo, now 24, suffered third-degree burns to 80% of his body and had his fingertips amputated after his Dodge Challenger crashed and exploded into flames in New Jersey in July 2018.\n
DiMeo underwent 20 reconstructive plastic surgeries and skin grafts before medics at New York University\u2019s Langone medical center performed the 23-hour simultaneous face and bilateral hand transplant in August 2020.\n
The youngster\u2019s incredible story captured the attention of Californian Jessica Koby, 32, who contacted DiMeo on Instagram after hearing about the surgery.\n
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The pair quickly struck up conversation, initially bonding over a shared love for Boston Terrier dogs. After falling into a long-distance relationship, Koby decided to relocate to New Jersey to be closer to DiMeo.\n
Koby, who works as a nurse, said she has been blown away by her boyfriend\u2019s strength and optimism in the face of his unprecedented challenges.\n
\u201cI love that he is gentle, kind and he is so courageous.\u201d she swooned in an interview with Southwest News Service. \u201cFor everything he has gone through, he remains so positive and such a light.\u201d\n
\u201cHe is very knowledgeable and anyone he talks to he can carry a conversation with,\u201d she continued. \u201cI really like that about him because I think that someone who is educated and speaks well is very attractive.\u201d\n
Koby \u2014 who is eight years older than DiMeo \u2014 further claimed that her beau is both \u201cfunny\u201d and \u201cvery mature for his age.\u201d\n
Meanwhile, a confident DiMeo says he never doubted he would find love despite the drastic change in his appearance.\n
\u201cWhen I was burnt I was not looking for love but I was always confident it would happen eventually because I am the same on the inside,\u201d he declared. \u201cNothing has changed besides my skin.\u201d\n
The couple have already moved together with their two Boston Terriers and DiMeo has revealed that he is even driving again after his hand transplant \u2014 something he previously told The Post that he was dreaming of doing.\n
\u201cI can drive again,\u201d DiMeo enthused. \u201cI just drive my girlfriend\u2019s Subaru Crosstrek.\u201d\n
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DiMeo has also revealed new details about the donor of his new face.\n
\u201cMy donor was a 48-year-old stroke victim from Delaware who died two days before my surgery,\u201d the 24-year-old stated.\n
DiMeo humorously told Southwest News Service that he would have preferred to receive a female\u2019s face \u201cjust so I wouldn\u2019t have to shave all the time\u201d \u2014 but says he is incredibly grateful to his donor and the 140 medical professionals who helped pull off the staggering surgery.\n
\u201cIt didn\u2019t feel weird being given the face of someone nearly twice my age because I was just completely ready to start my life again,\u201d he declared. \u201cThis is who I am now and I came to terms with that quite quickly really.\u201d\n
Despite his endless optimism, DiMeo admits he lost \u201cfake friends\u201d following his car crash, and is still subject to stares when he\u2019s out in public.\n
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\u201cIt was sad to see my fake friends all go but then you realize who your real friends are and you appreciate them more,\u201d he told Southwest News Service, displaying his indomitable spirit.\n
\u201cPeople [also] look at me, which doesn\u2019t bother me,\u201d DiMeo continued. \u201cI\u2019m 6\u201d1\u2019 and wide and then on top of that I wear short sleeves a lot of the time so you can see my burnt arms. So I don\u2019t mind people staring because I would stare too.\u201d\n
As for the future, DiMeo is now writing a book and is house-hunting with Koby, as they want more space for their two Boston Terrier dogs, Buster and Kirkland.\n
\u201cI could do a pity party but that\u2019s just not me,\u201d he declared, saying he feels buoyed by having his girlfriend at his side.\n
DiMeo\u2019s accident occurred after fell asleep at the wheel on his way home from a night shift working in a food testing laboratory in July 2018 in Hillside, New Jersey.\n
Two years later, DiMeo learned he would be undergoing a face and double transplant.
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\u201cI was ready for the transplant when it was offered to me,\u201d he stated. \u201cI didn\u2019t want to live how I was living.\u201d\n
It took a team of 140 surgeons, nurses and support staff to pull off the pioneering surgery in August 2020 \u2013 which had only been attempted twice before.\n
Joe\u2019s long road to recovery was led by Dr. Eduardo Rodriguez, one of NYU\u2019s preeminent plastic surgeons, who spoke to The Post following the surgery.\n
\u201cHis spirit is so strong,\u201d Rodriguez remarked at the time.\n
\u201cThere\u2019s always light at the end of the tunnel,\u201d DiMeo also told The Post. \u201cNever give up and never let your appearance slow you down. Always look at the good things.\u201d\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
I survived the first face and hand transplant \u2014 now I\u2019ve found love He\u2019s finally found someone to hold his hand. The first person to ever undergo a successful face and double hand transplant surgery has found love three years after his miracle operation. Joe DiMeo, now 24, suffered third-degree burns to 80% of his\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":114187,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[670],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-114172","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-news"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/NYPICHPDPICT000013531877-1.webp","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/114172","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=114172"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/114172\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":114189,"href":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/114172\/revisions\/114189"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/114187"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=114172"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=114172"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=114172"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}