A 16-Year-Old Who Looks 50: Rayeza's Incredible Story

Rayeza Kallago made headlines after revealing her actual age, leaving the world in shock.

The reason: Although Rayeza from the Philippines looks like she's 50, she's actually only 16 years old. She explained to the media that she's suffering from a rare genetic condition called Progeria, which causes her skin to wrinkle and appear much older than her actual age. People with Progeria look aged while they are, in reality, very young.

The astonishing part of her condition is that just two and a half years ago, she still looked like the teenager she truly is.

"Then suddenly, wrinkles started appearing on my face and body," she recalls. "I was shocked. I asked myself why my face looked like this since I didn’t even use makeup. I didn’t understand how it happened that I look so old."

When the wrinkles didn't subside, her family took her to top specialists, who took skin samples and sent them for diagnosis by doctors and experts in the United States.

"I am a 16-year-old girl, but I have no confidence to go out and enjoy myself like I used to. It was very hard for me to accept myself until I was exposed on TV and interviewed about my story. I received thousands of positive responses and decided to stop feeling sorry for myself. Right now, I'm focusing on achieving my dream of becoming a great chef, and I hope that one day this syndrome will go away, and I can get my life back."