There are people who suffer a rare condition that if they are exposed to the sun, it will provoke cancers. This condition is called Xeroderma Pigmentosum (XP). There is no news if there are patients here in Singapore suffering from this rare condition but there are two patients who are famous.
These patients are from France and they are twins. The twins are Thomas and Vincent Seris. During their normal days, we can see them wearing spacesuits. This sounds out of this world but the suits keep the twins safe from the sun’s exposure. Apart from spacesuits, the twins also wear ski masks and thick gloves to protect their skin.
XP is colloquially referred as “Children of the Night” (or in French Les Enfants de la Lune). It was mentioned earlier that any exposure to the sun could cause serious skin cancer. Patients are not only at risk outdoors because if they are exposed to neon lights and halogen lights, they will suffer fatality. As long as the light emits UV, XP patients are at risk.
According to the Association of Les Enfants de la Lune, there are 5 to 10 thousand cases in the world. The family of patients are living in darkness just to protect the people they love. In the case of the twins, their mother installed shutters and eventually UV-blocking film so her kids can live a normal life even inside the house.
It did not stop there because their school at the University of Bordeaux also installed protective filters specifically on their windows to allow the twins to have a regular education. No matter the condition, the important thing is the understanding of the people around them.
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