A bizarre skin condition
March 14, 2007 10:57 AM Subscribe
A bizarre skin condition. "A friend of mine has a relative who is a missionary in Eastern Europe. He recently shared photographs and the story of a man he is caring for, who has an extremely bizarre skin condition. The man has keratin-like matter growing out of the skin on hands and feet, which started when he was young, and very slowly continues to spread and grow..." (warning, gross pictures)
I have a toenail that is starting to look weird....now I'm afraid.
posted by Crackerbelly at 11:02 AM on March 14, 2007
posted by Crackerbelly at 11:02 AM on March 14, 2007
This is the most disgusting picture I have ever seen. I actually was unable to sleep after viewing this. Unless you have a strong stomach, don't look at it!
posted by pantufla at 11:03 AM on March 14, 2007
posted by pantufla at 11:03 AM on March 14, 2007
This was on Boing Boing and there is a theory that this condition may be the origin of the jackalope. Update.
posted by ND¢ at 11:05 AM on March 14, 2007
posted by ND¢ at 11:05 AM on March 14, 2007
Also, I think that we should take all of our disease-curing resources that are now going to cancer, aids, heart disease etc., and put them towards curing this condition, not because it kills lots of people and bunnies or because it is tragic, but merely because it is so gross that it should not be allowed to exist.
posted by ND¢ at 11:09 AM on March 14, 2007 [4 favorites]
posted by ND¢ at 11:09 AM on March 14, 2007 [4 favorites]
Conditions and mutations like this really help me see how evolution could be driven. Slowly, but surely, occasional drastic physical changes that could be beneficial crop up. I don't know if this one is gonna get committed to the human genome, though.
posted by potch at 11:09 AM on March 14, 2007
posted by potch at 11:09 AM on March 14, 2007
I debated posting this earlier, but my stomach was turning a bit too much. Normally I'm not bothered by such things, either.
posted by c0nsumer at 11:10 AM on March 14, 2007
posted by c0nsumer at 11:10 AM on March 14, 2007
Is there a medical term for this man's condition?
Treebeardism.
posted by Aloysius Bear at 11:12 AM on March 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
Treebeardism.
posted by Aloysius Bear at 11:12 AM on March 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
There's a lot of "how does he...?" questions that, the more I think about it, I probably do not want answered.
and I knew there was a good reason for compulsively biting my nails, good luck in trying to get me to stop after seeing that.
posted by Challahtronix at 11:20 AM on March 14, 2007
and I knew there was a good reason for compulsively biting my nails, good luck in trying to get me to stop after seeing that.
posted by Challahtronix at 11:20 AM on March 14, 2007
Wow, and I thought my calluses were icky and painful. Poor guy.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 11:24 AM on March 14, 2007
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 11:24 AM on March 14, 2007
Wow... both amazing and heartbreaking at once.
posted by tittergrrl at 11:24 AM on March 14, 2007
posted by tittergrrl at 11:24 AM on March 14, 2007
Hey, look on the bright side. He can scratch his own back really well.
posted by sfts2 at 11:36 AM on March 14, 2007
posted by sfts2 at 11:36 AM on March 14, 2007
I clicked the link.
I really hope that guy can get some treatment some day.
My brain needs an antidote.
Here is a suitable all-purpose brain antidote.
posted by Faint of Butt at 11:39 AM on March 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
I really hope that guy can get some treatment some day.
My brain needs an antidote.
Here is a suitable all-purpose brain antidote.
posted by Faint of Butt at 11:39 AM on March 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
I'm glad I read the comments before clicking. I'm about to eat lunch. Maybe afterward....
posted by Afroblanco at 11:43 AM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
posted by Afroblanco at 11:43 AM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
(warning, gross pictures)
Fuck that, I bet he gives a back scratch that feels like sex with God.
posted by The Straightener at 11:43 AM on March 14, 2007 [10 favorites]
Fuck that, I bet he gives a back scratch that feels like sex with God.
posted by The Straightener at 11:43 AM on March 14, 2007 [10 favorites]
Hey, look on the bright side. He can scratch his own back really well.
Hahaha.
This man clearly has a future here in the States.
posted by The Straightener at 11:44 AM on March 14, 2007
Hahaha.
This man clearly has a future here in the States.
posted by The Straightener at 11:44 AM on March 14, 2007
Thanks, Faint of Butt, that actually helped stop the itching.
posted by owhydididoit at 11:45 AM on March 14, 2007
posted by owhydididoit at 11:45 AM on March 14, 2007
Curiously, I did not find the photos especially gross. His skin condition is bizarre, even grotesque, but it isn't revolting to me - which is to say I would still shake his hand if I met him.
I was fascinated by what the missionary wrote about trying to cut some of them off - about how the larger ones could just be trimmed off without any discomfort but the smaller ones were painful. I was also fascinated by the fact that he saw no further growth in the area where they were cauterized.
Obviously, one doesn't want one's hands to be totally cauterized, but assuming he didn't lose any more mobility than he's already lost, that could be a solution to his condition.
Anyhow, this is a fascinating link. Thanks for sharing it.
posted by Joey Michaels at 11:51 AM on March 14, 2007
I was fascinated by what the missionary wrote about trying to cut some of them off - about how the larger ones could just be trimmed off without any discomfort but the smaller ones were painful. I was also fascinated by the fact that he saw no further growth in the area where they were cauterized.
Obviously, one doesn't want one's hands to be totally cauterized, but assuming he didn't lose any more mobility than he's already lost, that could be a solution to his condition.
Anyhow, this is a fascinating link. Thanks for sharing it.
posted by Joey Michaels at 11:51 AM on March 14, 2007
I wanted to say fake, but I'm uncertain. Some of the photos, especially the one of his whole torso, where you can see everything except the head, look very fake, like someone plastered stuff on his skin, and then made some dots and stuff a bit further up the arms to soften the transition. The first large image, of the hand, I suppose, also looked fake to me.
However, some of the others look more real, like the one of the foot especially.
If it's a hoax, it's fairly well accomplished, by someone who knows what they're doing with SFX makeup, and I can't really see why anyone would go to such lengths for something to post on a blog.
Most hoax photos of a shocking and bizarre nature that turn up on the internet are from movies or similar, though, so that might be a possibility. I'm hoping it is.
posted by Joakim Ziegler at 11:55 AM on March 14, 2007
However, some of the others look more real, like the one of the foot especially.
If it's a hoax, it's fairly well accomplished, by someone who knows what they're doing with SFX makeup, and I can't really see why anyone would go to such lengths for something to post on a blog.
Most hoax photos of a shocking and bizarre nature that turn up on the internet are from movies or similar, though, so that might be a possibility. I'm hoping it is.
posted by Joakim Ziegler at 11:55 AM on March 14, 2007
HPV huh? First we find out that it is the major cause of cervical cancer, now that. That virus just gets more interesting everyday.
posted by serazin at 11:55 AM on March 14, 2007
posted by serazin at 11:55 AM on March 14, 2007
Wow. That's horrible. I probably won't complain about anything for a while.
posted by inconsequentialist at 11:56 AM on March 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
posted by inconsequentialist at 11:56 AM on March 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
This is really weird. Props to the missionary for trying to help the guy out.
posted by EndsOfInvention at 12:00 PM on March 14, 2007
posted by EndsOfInvention at 12:00 PM on March 14, 2007
People ask me why I love being a pathologist. It's just this sort of stuff. I love bizarre diseases, horrible cancers, and freaky parasites. There is also a fairly rare, but certainly more common than whatever this gent has, called juvenile laryngeal papillomatosis which is the equivalent lesion growing down your larynx and trachea.
Thanks for the post!
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 12:03 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
Thanks for the post!
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 12:03 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
See - that's what you get. You don't touch meteor shit.
posted by Perigee at 12:04 PM on March 14, 2007 [4 favorites]
posted by Perigee at 12:04 PM on March 14, 2007 [4 favorites]
.. ... augh.
I'm just going to look at my hands for a while. My non-keratin-reef hands.
posted by Drexen at 12:18 PM on March 14, 2007
I'm just going to look at my hands for a while. My non-keratin-reef hands.
posted by Drexen at 12:18 PM on March 14, 2007
IT'S CLOBBERIN' TIME!!!
posted by boo_radley at 12:24 PM on March 14, 2007 [7 favorites]
posted by boo_radley at 12:24 PM on March 14, 2007 [7 favorites]
I try to do one thing I will regret every day to keep things interesting.
Thanks, empath!
posted by smackwich at 12:30 PM on March 14, 2007
Thanks, empath!
posted by smackwich at 12:30 PM on March 14, 2007
boo_radley for the win...
That said, I spent a little bit of time reading some of the comments at the linked site and was alarmed to learn that he might be releasing viruses into the bloodstream by cutting them off - thus spreading the condition.
Guess that isn't a solution.
Any dermatologists here? Anything we can do for this guy?
posted by Joey Michaels at 12:32 PM on March 14, 2007
That said, I spent a little bit of time reading some of the comments at the linked site and was alarmed to learn that he might be releasing viruses into the bloodstream by cutting them off - thus spreading the condition.
Guess that isn't a solution.
Any dermatologists here? Anything we can do for this guy?
posted by Joey Michaels at 12:32 PM on March 14, 2007
A very relevant (and quite striking) short story by A.S. Byatt... 9 pages at the New Yorker, worth a read if you've got time.
posted by anthill at 12:32 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
posted by anthill at 12:32 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
Where's Dr. House when you need him?
posted by Milkman Dan at 12:36 PM on March 14, 2007
posted by Milkman Dan at 12:36 PM on March 14, 2007
serazin writes " HPV huh? First we find out that it is the major cause of cervical cancer, now that. That virus just gets more interesting everyday."
For what it's worth, papillomaviruses have always been associated with skin conditions. "Papilla" is Latin for "nipple" and in medical parlance refers to anything sticking out from from the skin (nipples, bumps, blisters, pimples, etc.); "papilloma" refers to a benign skin tumor. The viral origins of some of these tumors (warts, mostly), has been known for probably over 50 years. In fact, I think this was the context in which viruses were first linked to tumor growth and cancer.
Also, there's no single "HPV"; it's a whole class of viruses.
posted by mr_roboto at 12:36 PM on March 14, 2007
For what it's worth, papillomaviruses have always been associated with skin conditions. "Papilla" is Latin for "nipple" and in medical parlance refers to anything sticking out from from the skin (nipples, bumps, blisters, pimples, etc.); "papilloma" refers to a benign skin tumor. The viral origins of some of these tumors (warts, mostly), has been known for probably over 50 years. In fact, I think this was the context in which viruses were first linked to tumor growth and cancer.
Also, there's no single "HPV"; it's a whole class of viruses.
posted by mr_roboto at 12:36 PM on March 14, 2007
...without looking at these pictures?
posted by ND¢ at 12:57 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
posted by ND¢ at 12:57 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
Ugh...I had just finished reading about the woman with the breast nipple growing under her left foot when I clicked on that link. Must...reach...for...unicorn...eye...wash.
posted by jaimev at 1:19 PM on March 14, 2007
posted by jaimev at 1:19 PM on March 14, 2007
This is exactly how the CHUD got started.
posted by Astro Zombie at 1:19 PM on March 14, 2007
posted by Astro Zombie at 1:19 PM on March 14, 2007
Corn chips are the new corns.
posted by kuujjuarapik at 1:24 PM on March 14, 2007
posted by kuujjuarapik at 1:24 PM on March 14, 2007
Y HALLO THAR NIGHTMARE FUEL
posted by dirtynumbangelboy at 1:39 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
posted by dirtynumbangelboy at 1:39 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
:: puts down lunch. walks away from computer. ::
posted by miss lynnster at 1:41 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
posted by miss lynnster at 1:41 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
I am simply never bothered by gross pictures. Goatse? Pshaw. Tubgirl? Meh. Botfly? Yawn. Decaptiation videos? Get real.
This has creeped me out SO BAD that I have to periodically go over to CuteOverload or some other site full of happy, fluffy kitties just to try to force the image out of my brain. I cannot recall ever having been so disturbed by a picture of a nasty medical condition.
posted by briank at 1:54 PM on March 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
This has creeped me out SO BAD that I have to periodically go over to CuteOverload or some other site full of happy, fluffy kitties just to try to force the image out of my brain. I cannot recall ever having been so disturbed by a picture of a nasty medical condition.
posted by briank at 1:54 PM on March 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
I just threw up a lot, in the comments section's mouth.
posted by tehloki at 2:00 PM on March 14, 2007
posted by tehloki at 2:00 PM on March 14, 2007
I want everyone to meditate on the following phrase:
Fruiting bodies.
That is all.
posted by Pastabagel at 2:02 PM on March 14, 2007 [3 favorites]
Fruiting bodies.
That is all.
posted by Pastabagel at 2:02 PM on March 14, 2007 [3 favorites]
[not homophobic]
posted by ND¢ at 2:08 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
posted by ND¢ at 2:08 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
Can someone explain what the scales or growths are made of? Is it skin? Is it bone? Is it the same substance as fingernails?
Is the same material in warts that some people have on their hands? is it the same material that make callouses hard?
posted by Pastabagel at 2:08 PM on March 14, 2007
Is the same material in warts that some people have on their hands? is it the same material that make callouses hard?
posted by Pastabagel at 2:08 PM on March 14, 2007
I am way more hardcore than you guys at not throwing up in my mouth while viewing horrifying physical deformities.
posted by Mister_A at 2:08 PM on March 14, 2007
posted by Mister_A at 2:08 PM on March 14, 2007
It's not Lupus.
posted by bruzie at 2:12 PM on March 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
posted by bruzie at 2:12 PM on March 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
Aww, that’s pretty bizarre...I guess.
posted by Smedleyman at 2:36 PM on March 14, 2007
posted by Smedleyman at 2:36 PM on March 14, 2007
I just put that on my list of things "not-to-fuck-with!"
posted by winks007 at 2:36 PM on March 14, 2007
posted by winks007 at 2:36 PM on March 14, 2007
Can someone explain what the scales or growths are made of? Is it skin? Is it bone? Is it the same substance as fingernails?
I believe it's keratin, the substance that makes up nails and hair.
posted by Snyder at 2:38 PM on March 14, 2007
I believe it's keratin, the substance that makes up nails and hair.
posted by Snyder at 2:38 PM on March 14, 2007
The outgrowths are made out of sin.
posted by Falconetti at 2:43 PM on March 14, 2007 [3 favorites]
posted by Falconetti at 2:43 PM on March 14, 2007 [3 favorites]
So, would it feel more like nails or hair? Is it hard?
posted by arcticwoman at 2:44 PM on March 14, 2007
posted by arcticwoman at 2:44 PM on March 14, 2007
After reading this I now know more about keratin than I ever wanted.
Now my only question is this: if it doesn't hurt when they are cut off, why don't they try to dissolve the growths with something like NaOH or HCL, or an organic solvent?
posted by Pastabagel at 2:51 PM on March 14, 2007
Now my only question is this: if it doesn't hurt when they are cut off, why don't they try to dissolve the growths with something like NaOH or HCL, or an organic solvent?
posted by Pastabagel at 2:51 PM on March 14, 2007
pantufla said: Unless you have a strong stomach, don't look at it!
What ^ said. Would you lick peanut butter from his mysterious growths? Go on I dare you.
posted by econous at 2:53 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
What ^ said. Would you lick peanut butter from his mysterious growths? Go on I dare you.
posted by econous at 2:53 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
I saw this linked a couple pages on reddit, and wondered if I should post this on Metafilter, The Ring style. I couldn't sleep the first night after I saw the pictures and read the story. I'd like to echo all the early comments above about this being the first thing in 12 years of Internet surfing that has actually out-and-out disturbed me.
There is definitely something at the very core of my brain that not only empathizes with this guy, but very much wants to remove all those growths. Reading through the comments by the missionary describing how he is unable to excise them using some rather extreme methods is disturbing and heart-breaking.
The only reason I would have posted this here would have been to see a reasoned discussion on the pictures. Instead, I see a few people making jokes and a lot of people seriously disturbed. Sorry, but this isn't best of the web.
posted by onalark at 3:01 PM on March 14, 2007
There is definitely something at the very core of my brain that not only empathizes with this guy, but very much wants to remove all those growths. Reading through the comments by the missionary describing how he is unable to excise them using some rather extreme methods is disturbing and heart-breaking.
The only reason I would have posted this here would have been to see a reasoned discussion on the pictures. Instead, I see a few people making jokes and a lot of people seriously disturbed. Sorry, but this isn't best of the web.
posted by onalark at 3:01 PM on March 14, 2007
This is pretty horrible, but the human body will do worse things to its unlucky owners. Consider the case of Harry Eastlack, whose bruised cells grew back as bone.
posted by aeschenkarnos at 3:18 PM on March 14, 2007
posted by aeschenkarnos at 3:18 PM on March 14, 2007
Click "continue" below for more photos.
The hell I will.
posted by lekvar at 3:19 PM on March 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
The hell I will.
posted by lekvar at 3:19 PM on March 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
If this is hands and feet, I guess I can deal with it. Face or genitalia would've bothered me a lot more.
Compared to Joseph Merrick, this guy is an also-ran. (miss_lynnster, if you're back, you might not want to pick up lunch just yet.)
posted by pax digita at 3:24 PM on March 14, 2007
Compared to Joseph Merrick, this guy is an also-ran. (miss_lynnster, if you're back, you might not want to pick up lunch just yet.)
posted by pax digita at 3:24 PM on March 14, 2007
Can someone explain what the scales or growths are made of? Is it skin? Is it bone? Is it the same substance as fingernails?
Is the same material in warts that some people have on their hands? is it the same material that make callouses hard?
Scroll to the bottom of this (SFW) page. You are seeing papillomas cut in cross-section. The skin surface is the dark pink layer of squamous cells surrounding a lighter pink, central core of fibrovascular tissue (collagen, lymphatics, capillaries, nerves, etc).
Certain common types (obviously other types cause preneoplastic and neoplastic lesions like cervical cancer, etc - but same idea) of Human papillomavirus, HPV (the etiologic agent of this guy's condition) causes basically the same type of lesion all over the body: larynx, skin, anus, vagina, cervix, etc. The body's response to the infection of the squamous layer of the skin by the HPV is to form a papilloma. A papilloma consists of a fibrovascular stalk growing out from the skin surface, on which is growing a thickened layer of virally-infected squamous cells.
These squamous cells produce keratin (which, of course, your hair and fingernails is composed of). They produce it in the cytoplasm of the cell (it is a type of filament which resides inside the cell).
A basement membrane sits right on top of the fibrovascular stalk, and the bottom layer of squamous cells sits right on top of the basement membrane. This bottom layer is the proliferative group of squamous cells which replaces the skin cells as they grow up towards the skin surface, and are shed. In certain areas of the body (eg. the nail bed) as the cells grow towards the surface, the cells stay together as they die and the keratin forms a hard stucture (ie. your fingernail).
So it is sort of composed of keratin, but the real answer is that his hands and feet are covered by innumerable papillomas (giant warts).
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 3:29 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
Is the same material in warts that some people have on their hands? is it the same material that make callouses hard?
Scroll to the bottom of this (SFW) page. You are seeing papillomas cut in cross-section. The skin surface is the dark pink layer of squamous cells surrounding a lighter pink, central core of fibrovascular tissue (collagen, lymphatics, capillaries, nerves, etc).
Certain common types (obviously other types cause preneoplastic and neoplastic lesions like cervical cancer, etc - but same idea) of Human papillomavirus, HPV (the etiologic agent of this guy's condition) causes basically the same type of lesion all over the body: larynx, skin, anus, vagina, cervix, etc. The body's response to the infection of the squamous layer of the skin by the HPV is to form a papilloma. A papilloma consists of a fibrovascular stalk growing out from the skin surface, on which is growing a thickened layer of virally-infected squamous cells.
These squamous cells produce keratin (which, of course, your hair and fingernails is composed of). They produce it in the cytoplasm of the cell (it is a type of filament which resides inside the cell).
A basement membrane sits right on top of the fibrovascular stalk, and the bottom layer of squamous cells sits right on top of the basement membrane. This bottom layer is the proliferative group of squamous cells which replaces the skin cells as they grow up towards the skin surface, and are shed. In certain areas of the body (eg. the nail bed) as the cells grow towards the surface, the cells stay together as they die and the keratin forms a hard stucture (ie. your fingernail).
So it is sort of composed of keratin, but the real answer is that his hands and feet are covered by innumerable papillomas (giant warts).
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 3:29 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
Didn't really gross me out, perhaps because I had heightened gross out expectations from all the comments. That said, it'd be great if there was some cure or solution to solve that man's problems.
posted by Atreides at 3:43 PM on March 14, 2007
posted by Atreides at 3:43 PM on March 14, 2007
This is the antidote. Not to the condition in the article, but to the curled-up-in-the-fetal-position-staring-blankly-ahead reaction to the photos.
posted by clevershark at 3:48 PM on March 14, 2007
posted by clevershark at 3:48 PM on March 14, 2007
I am simply never bothered by gross pictures. Goatse? Pshaw. Tubgirl? Meh. Botfly? Yawn. Decaptiation videos? Get real.
Ditto, but I swear to Christ I looked at this an hour ago before a meeting and it was skeeving me through most of that time. Just being back in this thread is making my skin crawl.
posted by rollbiz at 4:00 PM on March 14, 2007
Ditto, but I swear to Christ I looked at this an hour ago before a meeting and it was skeeving me through most of that time. Just being back in this thread is making my skin crawl.
posted by rollbiz at 4:00 PM on March 14, 2007
OK OK since we're talking disturbing skin conditions, here's more of a self-inflicted one, but just as disturbing (you have been warned):
Why not to wear a ring when climbing
scroll down, it gets worse
posted by Flashman at 4:28 PM on March 14, 2007
Why not to wear a ring when climbing
scroll down, it gets worse
posted by Flashman at 4:28 PM on March 14, 2007
At least he's not a barefoot mailman...
posted by greatgefilte at 4:32 PM on March 14, 2007
posted by greatgefilte at 4:32 PM on March 14, 2007
it's kinda wierd, because I get squicked out incredibly easily, but this didn't bother me in the slightest, and I even looked at the full sized pictures. It just doesn't register as real to me. Looks like makeup.
posted by empath at 4:37 PM on March 14, 2007
posted by empath at 4:37 PM on March 14, 2007
I saw this the other day and immediately went into Dog Growling at Brocolli mode.
But if I may riff off boo_radley for a sec: It's like this guy got a superpower, but not one of the really cool ones. He can't fly, turn invisible or get high on the Phoenix Force and make the D'Bari sun go nova just because, well, he's a bit peckish.
He's like a guy who can turn himself into a gazebo or like Dazzler or something.
posted by Cyrano at 5:01 PM on March 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
But if I may riff off boo_radley for a sec: It's like this guy got a superpower, but not one of the really cool ones. He can't fly, turn invisible or get high on the Phoenix Force and make the D'Bari sun go nova just because, well, he's a bit peckish.
He's like a guy who can turn himself into a gazebo or like Dazzler or something.
posted by Cyrano at 5:01 PM on March 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
I will never complain about being fat and bald again.
posted by Samuel Farrow at 5:08 PM on March 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
posted by Samuel Farrow at 5:08 PM on March 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
auses basically the same type of lesion all over the body: larynx, skin, anus, vagina, cervix, etc.
I was already disturbed in a deeply niggling way by that poor man's hands and feet and then I read this and thought about the same keratin growths on and in a vagina. I thought my vagina dentata terror dreams were troubling, but now I will never have an erection again.
posted by Falconetti at 5:39 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
I was already disturbed in a deeply niggling way by that poor man's hands and feet and then I read this and thought about the same keratin growths on and in a vagina. I thought my vagina dentata terror dreams were troubling, but now I will never have an erection again.
posted by Falconetti at 5:39 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
Oh man, I was all prepped after reading the comments to not be grossed out, having imagined just a few lesion-like growths or something, but I honestly felt nauseated by that picture. I am not even really sure why; I've looked at worse, surely... maybe it's because it seems like dead matter, but growing out of control... somehow very much dead and alive at once - reading that "most of it" did not bleed freaked me out, e.g.
posted by mdn at 5:41 PM on March 14, 2007
posted by mdn at 5:41 PM on March 14, 2007
I thought my vagina dentata terror dreams were troubling, but now I will never have an erection again.
If keratinous growths sprout from your johnson, you won't ever have anything *but* an erection, ever again. Possibly a whole blossom of erections.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 5:44 PM on March 14, 2007
If keratinous growths sprout from your johnson, you won't ever have anything *but* an erection, ever again. Possibly a whole blossom of erections.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 5:44 PM on March 14, 2007
Please join my new punk band, Blossom of Erections.
posted by Joey Michaels at 6:08 PM on March 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
posted by Joey Michaels at 6:08 PM on March 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
I was already disturbed in a deeply niggling way by that poor man's hands and feet and then I read this and thought about the same keratin growths on and in a vagina. I thought my vagina dentata terror dreams were troubling, but now I will never have an erection again.
*Bows*
If it's any consolation, I spend most of my days looking at the gnarliest stuff disease can do to your body (genitals included). For example, this was one of the coolest specimens my lab processed last year. (It's a very rare soft tissue cancer).
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 6:09 PM on March 14, 2007
*Bows*
If it's any consolation, I spend most of my days looking at the gnarliest stuff disease can do to your body (genitals included). For example, this was one of the coolest specimens my lab processed last year. (It's a very rare soft tissue cancer).
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 6:09 PM on March 14, 2007
I Double-Dog Dare someone to click the Jedi's link and tell us all what it is.
posted by lekvar at 6:58 PM on March 14, 2007
posted by lekvar at 6:58 PM on March 14, 2007
lekvar: Yeah, what you got there is your basic arm (from about the elbow down) separated from the rest of the body and opened up like a lab dissection so you can see the enormous tumor inside of it. I'm really not doing it justice.
posted by Joey Michaels at 7:11 PM on March 14, 2007
posted by Joey Michaels at 7:11 PM on March 14, 2007
For a small fee, I will click on any gruesome link you wish and describe the contents.
posted by Joey Michaels at 7:12 PM on March 14, 2007 [6 favorites]
posted by Joey Michaels at 7:12 PM on March 14, 2007 [6 favorites]
Jedi's link is to a "Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath Tumor," though what it looks like is a forearm (no rest-of-body attached) with the skin layed back so you can see the huge, veinous, slimy tumor. I think it was the model for several science-fiction-film special effects.
Jedi, do you know what happened to the person to whom this was once attached?
And lekvar, what do I win?
posted by girandole at 7:31 PM on March 14, 2007
Jedi, do you know what happened to the person to whom this was once attached?
And lekvar, what do I win?
posted by girandole at 7:31 PM on March 14, 2007
Yes, that is a very unfortunate case. That tumor is very rare, and is even more rare outside of patients who have a genetic syndrome called Neurofibromatosis Type 1. Long story short, it's a younger patient who didn't know they had NF1 before our diagnosis (incomplete penetrance for the genetics fans out there) and has kids and has most likely passed on this disease to them (autosomal dominant inheritance) and then will die from this tumor eventually (since they had metastatic disease at the time of diagnosis).
Memento mori
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 7:43 PM on March 14, 2007
Memento mori
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 7:43 PM on March 14, 2007
Yet another case where, stuck at work, I have to be intrigued by the descriptions until I get home. At first blush, I thought you were talking about the weird-stalks-of-fibre condition, which is bad enough.
I saw this the other day and immediately went into Dog Growling at Brocolli mode.
That should be a media company logo, a la Ubu.
posted by dreamsign at 7:52 PM on March 14, 2007
I saw this the other day and immediately went into Dog Growling at Brocolli mode.
That should be a media company logo, a la Ubu.
posted by dreamsign at 7:52 PM on March 14, 2007
Medical images interest me. I feel compassion for this man. Did a bit of research and wonder if his condition is a severe form of Epidermodysplasia Verruciformis or Acquired digital fibrokeratoma? A much less severe case. Or perhaps it's a severe form of palmoplantar keratosis?
If it's EV, this is the prognosis, possible treatment options.
posted by nickyskye at 7:54 PM on March 14, 2007
If it's EV, this is the prognosis, possible treatment options.
posted by nickyskye at 7:54 PM on March 14, 2007
I found the most merit in the comments section of the link....discussion gets right down to the most important issue (in my mind): how can this guy get the medical care he needs? It seems like this would pique the interest of some specialist or med school department....whether out of compassion, interest in studying a rare condition, or some combination of the two. I hope to see a followup along those lines at some point.
posted by availablelight at 8:07 PM on March 14, 2007
posted by availablelight at 8:07 PM on March 14, 2007
See, Arm Tumor isn't all that bad; it's an arm, and all the stuff you'd expect in an arm, and a big freaking tumor. Perhaps coming from notoriously cancer-ridden French peasant stock has lessened the shock value, but arm, arm stuff, tumor, meh.
Toenail hands, however... that shit ain't supposed to grow there; it's like an Anti-Uncanny Valley Effect.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 8:11 PM on March 14, 2007
Toenail hands, however... that shit ain't supposed to grow there; it's like an Anti-Uncanny Valley Effect.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 8:11 PM on March 14, 2007
ruwan - you marked this as a favorite??!!
posted by serazin at 8:39 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
posted by serazin at 8:39 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
Regarding the arm tumor, I am a Jedi, what happened to the arm bones?
As for our main link's subject, I'm interested to hear the followup. I expect that the best treatment for his hands will be to cut the growths off down to within a few millimetres of his skin, a finger at a time and then the palms and backs of his hands and then his wrists, so as to restore to him some hand flexibility, then treat the remaining growth stumps appropriately for whatever they turn out to be (probably papillomas). He'll have to do physiotherapy to restore his ability to grip and manipulate. From the looks of it, his hand muscles will have atrophied a lot, although his arm and leg muscles look surprisingly normal. He's probably been managing basic tasks with a two-handed grip, as people with diminished hand function (eg arthritis, burns, severe RSI) usually do.
Same for his feet, although flexibility will be a somewhat lower priority. I think even in the best case scenario his hands and feet will always be hideously scarred, and he'll probably have to wear gloves to assist his grip, but I'm pretty sure that his hands can be made functional unless there's something else nasty going on below the skin.
It's the hideousness of the condition that makes it remarkable. As far as functionality goes, he's much better off than a double-hand-amputee.
posted by aeschenkarnos at 8:45 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
As for our main link's subject, I'm interested to hear the followup. I expect that the best treatment for his hands will be to cut the growths off down to within a few millimetres of his skin, a finger at a time and then the palms and backs of his hands and then his wrists, so as to restore to him some hand flexibility, then treat the remaining growth stumps appropriately for whatever they turn out to be (probably papillomas). He'll have to do physiotherapy to restore his ability to grip and manipulate. From the looks of it, his hand muscles will have atrophied a lot, although his arm and leg muscles look surprisingly normal. He's probably been managing basic tasks with a two-handed grip, as people with diminished hand function (eg arthritis, burns, severe RSI) usually do.
Same for his feet, although flexibility will be a somewhat lower priority. I think even in the best case scenario his hands and feet will always be hideously scarred, and he'll probably have to wear gloves to assist his grip, but I'm pretty sure that his hands can be made functional unless there's something else nasty going on below the skin.
It's the hideousness of the condition that makes it remarkable. As far as functionality goes, he's much better off than a double-hand-amputee.
posted by aeschenkarnos at 8:45 PM on March 14, 2007 [1 favorite]
Regarding the arm tumor, I am a Jedi, what happened to the arm bones?
IIRC they're in there (under all the muscle and other soft tissue).
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 8:57 PM on March 14, 2007
IIRC they're in there (under all the muscle and other soft tissue).
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 8:57 PM on March 14, 2007
IIRC they're in there (under all the muscle and other soft tissue).
OK - the cut looked to me a lot deeper than that, like it was all the way through the arm. What's the yellowish-white line across the top of the cut?
posted by aeschenkarnos at 9:13 PM on March 14, 2007
OK - the cut looked to me a lot deeper than that, like it was all the way through the arm. What's the yellowish-white line across the top of the cut?
posted by aeschenkarnos at 9:13 PM on March 14, 2007
Does anyone else think "it looks SO MUCH like extra crispy recipe chicken from KFC?" No? Just me then...
posted by jonson at 10:34 PM on March 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
posted by jonson at 10:34 PM on March 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
God damn you to hell, jonson, I was successfully suppressing that particular one of my initial reactions.
No, it's not just you, you bastard.
posted by scrump at 11:14 PM on March 14, 2007
No, it's not just you, you bastard.
posted by scrump at 11:14 PM on March 14, 2007
JFC. I feel like I got through this whole thread and wasn't adequately warned.
Ah, this is what I had been thinking about.
And YES, jonson, thank you very much.
posted by dreamsign at 1:18 AM on March 15, 2007
Ah, this is what I had been thinking about.
And YES, jonson, thank you very much.
posted by dreamsign at 1:18 AM on March 15, 2007
I'm confused. This is from WFMU's Beware of the Blog. So where are the audio links?
posted by flapjax at midnite at 3:19 AM on March 15, 2007 [1 favorite]
posted by flapjax at midnite at 3:19 AM on March 15, 2007 [1 favorite]
What's the yellowish-white line across the top of the cut?
I think that you're looking at the median nerve. It's one of the 3 major nerves (median, ulnar, and radial) that innervates the distal arm/hand (and specifically the one that is involved in carpal tunnel syndrome). We dissected it out to so that it wasn't the nerve that the tumor was growing on. It was probably growing from one of the smaller, unnamed sensory nerves that innervate the skin. (These tumors arise from malignant change in Schwann cells, which are the cells that myelinate peripheral nerves).
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 6:17 AM on March 15, 2007
I think that you're looking at the median nerve. It's one of the 3 major nerves (median, ulnar, and radial) that innervates the distal arm/hand (and specifically the one that is involved in carpal tunnel syndrome). We dissected it out to so that it wasn't the nerve that the tumor was growing on. It was probably growing from one of the smaller, unnamed sensory nerves that innervate the skin. (These tumors arise from malignant change in Schwann cells, which are the cells that myelinate peripheral nerves).
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 6:17 AM on March 15, 2007
It's called Intelligent Design, people!
posted by hell toupee at 6:48 AM on March 15, 2007 [1 favorite]
posted by hell toupee at 6:48 AM on March 15, 2007 [1 favorite]
Where's Dr. House when you need him?
Doesn't he have the same problem on his face?
posted by scratch at 11:51 AM on March 15, 2007
Doesn't he have the same problem on his face?
posted by scratch at 11:51 AM on March 15, 2007
I am a Jedi: Wow, nerves are that thick? I learned something new today, I'd always figured they were these hair-thin, really delicate things.
posted by Joakim Ziegler at 11:02 PM on March 15, 2007
posted by Joakim Ziegler at 11:02 PM on March 15, 2007
Yeah they're that big so that the poor medical students can find them and not flunk anatomy class.
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 7:55 AM on March 16, 2007
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 7:55 AM on March 16, 2007
AUUUGH HOLY SWEET BURNING FUCKING HELL SHITS THE FUCKING PAIN
Can someone please tell me exactly why I was browsing through empath's posting history and opened this godforsaken brainfucking nightmare of a thread? I very nearly happily missed all of this. And to think that not more than 5 minutes ago I was totally hungry for a bowl of raisin bran.
posted by loquacious at 7:56 AM on March 30, 2007 [1 favorite]
Can someone please tell me exactly why I was browsing through empath's posting history and opened this godforsaken brainfucking nightmare of a thread? I very nearly happily missed all of this. And to think that not more than 5 minutes ago I was totally hungry for a bowl of raisin bran.
posted by loquacious at 7:56 AM on March 30, 2007 [1 favorite]
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posted by jokeefe at 11:00 AM on March 14, 2007