Army Pvt. Shamika Burrage's left ear is unlike other ears, though you might not realize it at first. Like her right ear, it is made from Burrage's own cells, and connected to her head by her own blood vessels. She can hear perfectly well out of it, and feel perfectly well when you touch it. And yet, until a few days ago, Burrage's left ear was not on her head — it was on her arm.
Burrage lost her left ear during a single-car crash in Odessa, Texas, in 2016. Now, she is the latest recipient of a cosmetic reconstruction procedure called prelaminated forearm free flap surgery — a sci-fi-sounding operation that involves "growing" new tissue by implanting a patient's cartilage under their forearm skin. While many civilians around the world have successfully undergone the procedure, Burrage is the first American soldier to receive the novel reconstruction process, according to a statement from the U.S. Army. [The 27 Oddest Medical Cases]