Hong Shu struggled to eat, sleep or breathe after being diagnosed with the rare Madelung diseaseA man who downed two litres of spirits a day for more than 30 years developed a fatty tumour that led him to be called 'the man with the horse's neck'.
Hong Shu struggled to eat, sleep or breathe after being diagnosed with the rare Madelung disease, where fatty deposits accumulate in various areas of the body including the neck, arms and legs.
Hong, from Guangzhou, southern China, recently underwent multiple surgeries to remove the deposits and is due to be discharged from hospital, the People's Daily Online reported.
There are only around 400 instances of the extremely rare disease world-wide.
A decade ago, the 53-year-old started to see changes his body. It started with swelling behind both of his ears but gradually spread to around his throat area.
Overtime, the fatty deposits took over his neck, forming what's been described as horse, cow, and even camel neck.
Deformity: The man is suffering from Madelung disease
Hong became withdrawn, depressed and rarely went outside.
But after being diagnosed, he has been given a fresh start as doctors carried out three successive surgeries to remove the fatty deposits.
Before his recent surgeries, the swelling around Hong's throat was more than six inches wide and around five and half inches long.
On his neck, Hong also had two lumps, which measured more than seven inches wide.
Hong is said to consume up to two litres of Chinese spirit bajiu a day. The distilled spirit is made from rice, sorghum or other grains, and has an ABV of anywhere between 40 and 60 per cent.
Over the space of 30 years, Hong has consumed tens of thousands of litres of the hard liquor, triggering the disease.
