it's getting dusty in here
For the past 33 years, Larry Hester was blind. But with the help of a breakthrough "bionic eye" device, the 66-year-old North Carolina man can now see again.
Hester suffers from a condition called retinitis pigmentosa, which causes a person's retinas to deteriorate.
He can now see on a limited basis and is able to tell light from darkness.
The Duke University Eye Center shared the incredible footage of Hester's first sights, writing the following:
"In September, 2014, an electronic stimulator was surgically implanted in his left eye. On October 1st, 2014 Duke eye surgeon Dr. Paul Hahn turned it on for the first time. While the device does not restore vision in the normal sense, it provides light-and-darkness differentiation. He's the seventh person in the United States to receive the visual aid since the device, known as the Argus II Retinal Prosthesis System, was approved by the FDA. Duke is only the fourth center in the country to implant the device since approval."
Hester and his wife, Jerry, talked to Steve Doocy this morning about how their lives have changed in the past few weeks.
"For 30 years, there was no light. So even though it's so very minute and small and it's limited, it's significant to me. It means that I can see," said Hester, adding that if he could ever have his normal vision restored, the one thing he'd want to see is his wife's "beautiful blue eyes."
He explained that in their den recently, he was able to see enough that he could distinguish where his wife's face was and reach out to touch it.
"That's simple, but it means so much."
Jerry Hester admires the way her husband has dealt with more than three decades of blindness, praising him for his "hard work" at a tire business with his brother for 38 years.
"He has never once complained about being blind. He's never said, 'why me?' He's just dealt with it and gone on with his life," she said, adding that he can now even see his grandchildren a little bit.
The amazing process started when Jerry read something that they received in the mail about the retinal prosthesis.
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