Palanisami, 42, lives in Tamil Nadu, India, where doctors cannot diagnose his illness
A poor villager who is riddled with tumours weighing up to 40lb on his neck and arms after being hit with a mystery illness has been told he cannot be operated on in India over fears it would be fatal.
Shocking images from a remote village in India have shown the staggering physical impact of the man’s rare and jaw-dropping condition.
Five gigantic tumours grew on the man’s body over 30 years, leaving 42-year-old K Palanisami, with problems moving and speaking.
Poor Palanisami lives in the hilltop village of Podarankadu, Tamil Nadu, India, miles from any medical help.
He had grown up fit and healthy until the age of 12 when the growths formed. One grew on his neck, four on his arms, and five much smaller ones have emerged elsewhere on his body.
Palanisami was eventually admitted to hospital in Dharmapuri but confused doctors cannot explain the tumours following x-rays and blood tests.
The tumours now prevent the man from leaving his home.
The man has four large tumours along his arms and one huge one on his neck. He has a further five smaller growths
K Sivasami, his older brother, said: ‘Everything was normal till he was 12 years of age. Then small tumours started appearing on his body.
The 42-year-old has been told he should not be operated on in India because of surgery could be fatal. Doctors have not been able to diagnose his illness
The largest tumour on Palanisami’s body weighs a shocking 40lbs. His head movement is impacted by the growth
Palanisami lives in a remote village and is cared for by his siblings
‘My father Kailas took him to doctors in Dharmapuri and Chennai, but they said that the tumours are harmless and will not affect him.
‘The doctors also said that if any surgical procedure was to be carried out to remove the tumours, it could prove to be fatal for him.
‘As our village is located in the hills and as we didn’t have that much finance to travel to far off cities to seek medical help, we didn’t pay much attention to his condition. But, now the tumours have grown to massive sizes affecting his daily life.’
Palanisami has three brothers and one sister – but no other family member suffers with the condition.
His brother added: ‘Following the death of my father, we two brothers and our wives are taking care of him.’