A “miracle” Nebraska woman born without a brain has defied the odds as her family marked her 20th birthday—decades after being told she’d never make it to five, reports said.
Alex Simpson turned 20 years old on November 4, according to KETV.
Simpson’s parents initially believed she was a healthy child, until a check-up two months later revealed she had hydranencephaly, a rare condition that left her with just a pinky’s worth of brain matter at the base of her skull, the report said.
At the time, the Nebraska family was told Alex wouldn’t live past four years old.
“Twenty years ago we were scared, but faith, I think, is really what kept us alive,” Shawn Simpson, Alex’s father, told the TV station.
Though Alex is missing the parts of the brain responsible for seeing and hearing, her family believes she is more aware than people might think.
“Say somebody’s stressed around her. Nothing will even happen, it could be completely silent, but Alex will know. She’ll feel something,” SJ, Alex’s 14-year-old brother, told the outlet. “Like, if my grandma’s hurting in her back, she’ll radiate off of it—it’s crazy,” he added.
SJ said he is proud to be Alex’s brother and has spent a lot of time researching her condition to learn how to support her.
Alex’s strength inspires the whole Simpson family, who call her a “miracle.”
https://nypost.com/2025/11/09/us-news/woman-born-with-no-brain-turns-20-in-medical-miracle/
