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Man left paralysed after horrific accident learns to speak again through ground-breaking technology

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Neurosurgeon Dr Edward Chang is at the head of Project Steno which assists patients who are unable to speak. (Photo: NYTimes)
Neurosurgeon Dr Edward Chang is at the head of Project Steno which assists patients who are unable to speak. (Photo: NYTimes)

“My family is outside.”

A simple sentence yet it was nothing short of a miracle to a man left paralysed after a car crash in 2003. Those four words were the first he was able to say thanks to groundbreaking technology that sounds like something from science fiction. 

The man, who for the sake of privacy is known only by his nickname Pancho, was 20 when he lost the ability to speak after suffering a catastrophic stroke following the accident.

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