When Michiel Vandeweert was a child, doctors told his family that he would probably not make it to age 12.

When Michiel Vandeweert was a child, doctors told his family that he would probably not make it to age 12.

He had progeria, Hutchinson-Gilford syndrome, a genetic disease so rare that it ages the body at a speed that gives no one enough time. Science estimates that the average lifespan with this condition is around 15 years.\

Michiel made it to 28 He never hid. At age 15, he published a book with his own story, “”Ik Ben Michiel,”” “”I Am Michiel.”” That title already explained everything: he did not want people to see him as a disease, but as a person.