Aundrea Aragon sits with two of her three children, Marc and Reina. Aragon had brain fluid leaking out of her nose for nearly five months before doctors figured out what was happening. Her story has has made her an Internet sensation.

Malala Yousafzai’s survival from a bullet wound to the head and early signs of hope bear a strong resemblance to the case of U.S. Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords – and if anyone knows, it’s the doctors who treated the American politician shortly after she was shot in the head and helped her through a gruelling rehabilitation.

“There are some very strikingly similar features: the left-sided gunshot wound, the fact that the reports are that [Malala] was moving everything and responding to commands by the initial triage doctors out in Swat [Pakistan]. These are all good things – so that should give some real optimism to everyone involved,” said Dr. Michael Lemole, the neurosurgeon who operated on Ms. Giffords at the University Medical Center in Tucson, Arizona.

This week marks the first anniversary since University of Arizona Medical Center's doctors and nurses worked round-the-clock to treat U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and other victims of the Tucson-area shooting rampage.

In the days after the Jan. 8 attack that killed six people and wounded 13, the hospital became the focal point of Tucson's efforts to recover in the aftermath of tragedy.

Life has changed dramatically for the two surgeons who became medical celebrities with their daily media briefings on Giffords and the other shooting victims. The hospital has gained boosts both in philanthropy and reputation.