Bangladesh ‘Tree Man’ to undergo surgery

A Bangladeshi called “Tree Man” for massive bark-like warts on his hands and feet will finally have surgery to remove the growths that started appearing 10 years ago, a hospital said today, January 31st.

Abul Bajandar, from the southern district of Khulna, is preparing for the surgery to cut out the growths weighing at least five kilogrammes (11 pounds) that have smothered his hands and feet.

Bajandar who was forced to quit working as a bicycle puller told AFP at Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) that he initially thought that the growth are harmless, "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,” the 26 years old added.

A team of doctors has been formed to perform the operation at DMCH, Bangladesh’s largest state-run hospital, which has decided to waive costs of the treatment.

Tests are underway to ensure Bajandar’s root-like warts can be removed surgically without damaging major nerves or causing any other health problems.

The huge warts, which first began appearing when he was a teenager but started spreading much four years ago, have been diagnosed as epidermodysplasia verruciformis, 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.