Raphael Chiwandire, 15, has been named a recipient of the British Citizen Youth Award for his fundraising work following a grueling 10-hour surgery to rebuild his jaw with bone from his own leg.
The London teenager was diagnosed with ameloblastoma, a rare benign tumor that accounts for roughly one percent of all jaw tumors and cysts, after first noticing painful swelling on the right side of his gums and jaw in November 2025. His mother, Nyasha, 36, a children’s mental health practitioner, spotted the abnormality by chance on the last day of school in December when she asked to check whether he had brushed his teeth.
Nyasha said: “He went into the bathroom, then ran out quickly and I asked if he had brushed his teeth and if I could have a look. That’s when I noticed the swelling on his gum, and instantly I knew something wasn’t right.”
Within three days, Nyasha took Raphael to the dentist, who performed an X-ray and determined the swelling had “nothing to do with the teeth,” referring him to the oral and maxillofacial department at Northwick Park Hospital in Harrow. A CT scan on January 6 confirmed a tumor in his jaw, and a biopsy on January 18 tested whether it was cancerous.
The initial results, delivered February 26, came back “inconclusive,” leaving the family in limbo. Raphael said: “It was already a long process waiting for them to do it, so to get inconclusive results was just annoying. I wanted to get it over with.”
Nyasha requested a transfer to Great Ormond Street Hospital, where Raphael had an initial appointment on May 15 and a follow-up biopsy on May 21. His ameloblastoma diagnosis was confirmed on June 5.
Raphael said: “I was just happy it wasn’t anything cancerous.”
Nyasha added: “Great Ormond Street Hospital was so thorough and they explained everything to us carefully. They said the tumor eats away at the jaw bone, so it was very thin and the only way to stop that tumor in its tracks was to do a 10-hour reconstructive surgery. But it’s never easy for any parent to hear those words.”
Raphael said he was “shocked” when surgeons explained they would remove bone from his leg and implant it in his jaw where the tumor had been. The procedure, known as fibula free flap surgery, took place on August 6 and involved transplanting bone and two surrounding blood vessels from his leg to reconstruct his jaw.
Nyasha described waiting for news during the operation as “a very scary experience,” She said: “I was just sitting in Costa and I literally fell down on my knees just thanking God. It was just the best phone call I’ve ever received in my life.”
Raphael remained hospitalized for two weeks. He said he initially “couldn’t eat anything” or speak for several days, having lost 12 of his 16 bottom teeth in the surgery. Only two teeth on the left-hand side and both wisdom teeth were preserved. He needed additional surgery after doctors discovered his jaw had dislocated immediately post-operation, plus physiotherapy to regain his ability to walk. Nyasha said doctors were “shocked” by the speed of his recovery.
Still on a soft-food diet, Raphael is hoping to have replacement teeth fitted in the coming months.
Just one month after surgery, in September, he launched a reading challenge to raise money for Teenage Cancer Trust, building on two previous fundraisers for the same charity: a running challenge in 2023 and a push-up challenge in 2024. His efforts have raised more than £2,000 total to date.
Raphael told PA Real Life: “Knowing that my story is being recognised in this way is something I’ll carry with me for the rest of my life. Boys like me, coming from my background and upbringing, don’t always get opportunities like this. So for me, this is an opportunity to show every young boy out there that it’s possible. No matter where you come from, what challenges you face or what your circumstances are, you can still achieve something meaningful and make a positive difference.”
When he learned earlier this month that he would receive the British Citizen Youth Award, which honors young people across the UK who have made positive impacts on their communities, Raphael said it “meant the world” to him.
Raphael’s journey began with a routine dental check that spiraled into months of scans, biopsies, and anxious waiting before culminating in the complex August surgery that used his own fibula to restore his jaw. The ameloblastoma that triggered it all was benign, but its aggressive erosion of bone tissue left surgeons no alternative but the radical reconstructive approach.
Raphael is hoping to have replacement teeth fitted in the next couple of months.