A man from Bangladesh, also known as 'Tree Man' for massive tree-like warts growing on his hands and feet, will undergo surgery to remove the bark-like growths which began developing 10 years ago, medical sources said on Sunday.
Abul Bajandar, from the southern district of Khulna, was making preparations for the operation which will have the growths cut off. The growths weigh an astonishing five kilos and have smothered his hands and feet.
"Initially, I thought that they're harmless," the 26-year-old said as he visited the Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH).
"But slowly I lost all my ability to work. There are now dozens of two to three inch roots in both my hands. And there are some small ones in my legs," added Bajandar who was forced to quit his as a bicycle puller and could no longer find employment.
A specialized team of medical professionals has been put together to perform the sugery at DMCH, Bangladesh's largest state-run hospital, which has offered to waive costs of the treatment.
Bajandar is awaiting the results of medical tests to insure that surgically removing the root-like warts will not damage any major nerves or cause any other health problems.
The sizeable growths first appeared when he was a teenager but then began rapidly spreading four years ago. The warts have been diagnosed as epidermodysplasia verruciformis which is an extremely rare genetic skin disease that makes the person susceptible to skin growths.
"Popularly it is known as tree-man disease," DMCH director Samanta Lal Sen told AFP.
"As far as we know there are three such cases in the world including Abul Bajandar. It is the first time we have found such a rare case in Bangladesh," he said.
In 2008, an Indonesian man went through a string of operations to remove massive warts from all over his body.
Adhuri Bibi, Bajandar's elder sister, said hundreds of people have visited their family home in Khulna over the years to meet the 'Tree Man'.
"Even here at the hospital, hundreds have already gathered," she said.
Bajandar, a father of one, said he tried to remove the growths himself when they first appeared, but it was extremely painful.
"After that I went to a village homeopath and herbal specialist. But those medicines only worsened my condition."
He also attended consultations with doctors in neighbouring India, but he and his family could not afford the cost of the operation there.
