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THEY might look like two adults playing at being astronauts while doing their weekly shop, but in fact, the two men behind the masks have a deadly allergy to the sun.
Thomas and Vincent Seris, who live in Bordeaux, France, suffer from Xeroderma Pigmentosum (XP), cannot be exposed to the sun and its ultraviolet (UV) light.
If they are, the twins are likely to develop a “precocious” and potentially fatal skin cancer.
In some cases, just a glimpse of sunlight is all it takes for the cancer to develop.
In an effort to be allowed to live a normal life, the twins, who have been dubbed “The Children of the Moon” by French media, have been testing out a new protective mask. The mask is transparent and ventilated, and has been developed by several hospitals in France.
Four years ago it was a different story.
The boys had to wear a ski mask every time they left home, as well as coveralls and white gloves manufactured by NASA.
The boys, then 17, knew it was a scary look: so much so, they allowed their lives to be the inspiration for French film “La Permission de Minuit.”
“I would love to stop scaring people,” Vincent said at the time it was released. “[I hope it] will allow people to take another look at the children suffering in France.”
Vincent and Thomas are two of just 70 or 80 people living with the genetic condition in France.
In the entire world, it is thought there are only somewhere between 5,000 and 10,000 such cases.
They were diagnosed with XP aged just two and, within four months Vincent had had three bouts of skin cancer.
Their worried parents Francoise and Bernard found ways of keeping their sons safe —including putting UV filters over the windows of their home.
They also set up the charity Les Enfants de la Lune in 2000, hoping to bring together people with the genetic conditions and put pressure on medical researchers to find out more about XP.
Vincent and Thomas managed to live a relatively ordinary life. And now they are students at the University of Bordeaux.(SD-Agencies)
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