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Zhang ChengChinese man with 15kg abdominal tumour
Country:
 China |
Content:
- A Chinese Man with a 33-Pound Abdominal Tumor
- A Decade of Suffering
- Medical Discovery and Diagnosis
- A Long-Awaited Solution
- Financial and Emotional Toll
- Similar Cases Worldwide
A Chinese Man with a 33-Pound Abdominal Tumor
A Chinese man who lived with a massive abdominal growth for over ten years, resembling a pregnant woman, has now undergone surgery to remove the nearly 33-pound tumor.
A Decade of Suffering
Now 33 years old, Zhang Cheng (not his real name) endured his ever-expanding stomach for over a decade. For ten long years, the Chinese man believed that traditional remedies could cure his ailment. Eventually, his abdomen became so large that it gave Zhang the appearance of carrying a child of extraordinary size.
The hospital has not disclosed the real name of the man, who is from Leshan, a city in the southwestern Chinese province of Sichuan. Local media have referred to him as Zhang Cheng.
Medical Discovery and Diagnosis
Cheng first sought medical attention in 2004 when he began experiencing discomfort in his abdomen. The tumor was discovered in 2006. It remains unknown whether the tumor was cancerous or not. However, it is likely that medical professionals would have raised the alarm immediately if it had been cancerous.
As the "alien mass" grew to the size of a beach ball, doctors determined that the tumor was pressing on Zhang's internal organs and diaphragm. This pressure could have had fatal consequences.
Zhang consulted various hospitals around China. Some doctors urged him to undergo surgery, while others deemed it too risky to remove the tumor. Cheng's sister reported that her brother often returned home from medical appointments in a state of limbo, unsure of what to do.
A Long-Awaited Solution
Eventually, the family gathered enough funds to have the tumor removed at a military hospital in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan. Leading surgeon Dr. Dai Ruiwu performed the complex six-hour operation, which required the expertise of three specialists from three different departments.
Ruiwu stated that the patient would need to remain in the intensive care unit for an extended period due to the pressure the tumor had placed on his internal organs for years.
Financial and Emotional Toll
Zhang's sister told a local newspaper, "My brother missed several opportunities for treatment because our family is poor."
"In the past, we visited many other hospitals where doctors told us the chances of success were low and sent us home," she added.
She also mentioned that Zhang had been perpetually single as no women were interested in dating a man who looked "pregnant."
Similar Cases Worldwide
News of the Chinese man with the giant tumor emerged after media coverage of a Peruvian woman who had an ovarian tumor, also weighing around 33 pounds, removed. The growth had been developing inside her for thirteen years.
Irianita Rojas Rasma, now 22 years old, from northeastern Peru, also bore a pregnancy-like appearance due to the massive tumor, which caused her constant pain. Irianita had to drop out of school and quit her job.
After Peruvian Health Minister Anibal Velasquez visited Rasma's town and heard her story, he immediately ordered his staff to transport her to a hospital in Lima for surgery.
