22-year-old New Jersey resident Joe DiMeo had a rare face and hands transplant last August. In 2019, DiMeo fell asleep at the wheel after working a night shift as a product tester for a drug company. The car hit a pole flipped over, and burst into flames. Another driver who saw the accident pulled over to rescue DiMeo.

Afterward, he underwent 20 surgeries and many skin grafts to treat his third-degree burns. Once it became clear that traditional surgeries couldn’t help him regain full vision or use of his hands, DiMeo’s medical team began preparing for the risky transplant. Almost immediately, the team encountered challenges including finding a donor. However, about two years later the team finally identified a donor in Delaware and completed the 23-hour procedure a few days later.

US surgeons have completed at least 18 face transplants and 35 hand transplants, according to the United Network for Organ Sharing(UNOS), which oversees the nation’s transplant system. But the face and double hand transplant is extremely rare and had only been tried twice before. The first attempt was in 2009 on a patient in Paris who died about a month later from complications. Two years later, Boston doctors tried it again on a woman, but had to remove the transplanted hands days later.

As with any transplant, the danger of rejection is the highest early on, but lasts endlessly. “You’re never free from that risk,” a doctor said. “Transplantation for any patient is a process that plays out over a long period of time.” Still, the doctor was amazed to see that DiMeo was able to master skills like zipping up his jacket and putting on his shoes. “It’s very pleasing and satisfying to all of us.” So far, DiMeo has not shown any signs of rejecting his new face or hands. “You got a new chance at life. You really can’t give up,” he said.

“Can I hug you?” community nurse Joyce Jebambula asks with a smile as she welcomes me back to her village. “Of course,” I say as I put my arms around her. It’s an unbelievable moment. Just at the height of the outbreak more than a year ago, there was an “avoid body contact” rule here. It’s now been removed.

One of the most challenging parts of reporting this outbreak over the past 18 months is that I haven't been able to touch anyone in the worst-affected countries. When Ebola(埃博拉病毒) survivors described in tears describing losing their families, I had to almost sit on my hands to avoid reaching out to comfort them.

The outbreak was declared over in Sierra Leone on 7 November. I returned for the celebrations. But despite reaching this long-awaited milestone, all is not well.

Ibrahim Koroma, 21, clings to (紧紧抓住) his survivor's certificate (证明) outside the home. All 17 of his family are now dead. The certificate is one of his most prized possessions. "He does not pose any risk to the community" it reads.

Ibrahim tells me how his landlord has allowed him to stay in one of the rooms of his former family home until the end of the year. He says he doesn't know what he'll do after that. He does some part-time work, relying heavily on help from neighbors. His two little sisters and little brother died in the very room where he now sleeps. He says he often lies awake thinking about them, feeling very bad.

The Ebola outbreak in West Africa was the worst on record. In past outbreaks there had only been a few hundred deaths and a few hundred survivors. It was thought Ebola could live for only three months. But research has now shown it can linger for at least nine months. Scientists are still trying to find how long it could be infectious.