Bangladeshi girl could be first female with tree man syndrome
- 8 years ago
BANGLADESH — The tree man syndrome has been known to afflict only a handful of people around the world, all of them male. But now doctors fear the rare disease has found its first female victim.
When bark-like warts began appearing Sahana Khatun’s face four months ago, her father wasn’t too concerned, the Guardian reported. But the growths soon worsened, spreading rapidly across the 10-year-old’s nose, ears, and chin.
Sahana’s father is a poor laborer from a village in Bangladesh’s rural north, but he was so worried, he took his daughter all the way to the capital Dhaka for treatment.
Doctors suspect the young girl has the tree man disease, but are still carrying out tests to confirm.
Sahana has been admitted to the Dhaka Medical College and Hospital, the same center that’s been providing treatment for Abul Bajandar, 27, known as the tree man of Bangladesh.
The tree man endured 5-kilogram growths on his hands and feet, before receiving multiple surgeries for over a year to have them removed completely.
Doctors are hopeful that Sahana has a milder form of the disease, which they say can clear with one surgery.
When bark-like warts began appearing Sahana Khatun’s face four months ago, her father wasn’t too concerned, the Guardian reported. But the growths soon worsened, spreading rapidly across the 10-year-old’s nose, ears, and chin.
Sahana’s father is a poor laborer from a village in Bangladesh’s rural north, but he was so worried, he took his daughter all the way to the capital Dhaka for treatment.
Doctors suspect the young girl has the tree man disease, but are still carrying out tests to confirm.
Sahana has been admitted to the Dhaka Medical College and Hospital, the same center that’s been providing treatment for Abul Bajandar, 27, known as the tree man of Bangladesh.
The tree man endured 5-kilogram growths on his hands and feet, before receiving multiple surgeries for over a year to have them removed completely.
Doctors are hopeful that Sahana has a milder form of the disease, which they say can clear with one surgery.