This longitudinal study investigates how a face transplant recipient’s brain and behaviour adapt as the transplanted face becomes incorporated into the person’s sense of self. Tracking self-face recognition before and after transplantation, the authors report neurobehavioural evidence showing a strong preoperative representation of the patient’s pre-injury face, followed by gradual integration of the post-transplant face into self-identity over time. The work highlights the brain’s capacity for self-related plasticity after life-altering reconstructive surgery and underscores the psychological dimensions of recovery beyond surgical survival and function.