‘Pass on the warmth’: blind Chinese teen aces gaokao, chooses medicine to help others
Music becomes his sanctuary and, with guidance from his teachers, he learns to play five instruments
A teenager from northern China who lost his sight in a brutal attack has emerged as one of the top scorers in the national college entrance examination for students with disabilities.
Thirteen years ago, Guo Bin was just six years old when a middle-aged woman lured him away from his home in Shanxi province.
After threatening to gouge out his eyes if he continued to cry, the woman attacked him with a tree branch, resulting in permanent blindness.
Guo was later found conscious but covered in blood. Doctors determined that the optic nerves in both his eyes had been irreparably damaged.
DNA evidence identified the attacker as Guo’s aunt, who took her own life by jumping into a well days after the incident. Police stated that the assault likely stemmed from a family dispute.
Following the attack, Guo received free treatment from a medical team led by Hong Kong ophthalmologist Dennis Lam Shun-chiu, who performed surgery to implant prosthetic eyes.