Missionary encounters extremely bizarre skin condition in Eastern Europe (part 2)

About a month ago on this blog, I posted photos and a story about a missionary in Eastern Europe who is caring for a man who has keratin-like matter growing out of the skin on hands and feet (see part one of the story here). A month later, I can report that man's strange condition is improving - but what is causing the condition has yet to be exactly identified, it seems. The man is also getting the full attention of the medical and research communities in the region (rather mysteriously, as you'll see below). As you can see from the recent photos the missionary sent me, the growths have been reduced through chemical treatments, soakings, and whittling down (a dremel saw was used). While the research and treatments are still being conducted, the man and his family seem to be in for the long haul (click 'continue' below for more photos). The missionary told me...

"I have looked at the blog link, and I found some of the responses very helpful. I passed it onto the Romanian people in charge of the man. I will try to flesh this out a bit more for you. The man is on the eastern side of Romania, and I am on the western side, though the country is not so big (about the size of Oregon) it takes 16 hrs to get from here to there. There are no interstates, and every time you come to a new town or village you slow down to 25 miles per hour. I went by train to avoid the wintery road conditions. I saw him on a Monday, and worked on him for 2 hours cutting and cleaning and applying Compound W-type acid in areas. Approximately 90% of the growths do not have blood circulation or pain associated with cutting them. About 10% do bleed slightly and seem to hurt. After 2 hours he became very fidgety and I decided to stop. After 2 hours of work there was not much to show for it by way of a noticeable difference, though there were a lot of growths cut off. I would have needed to work on him a month or more at the rate we were going. I returned home on Tuesday having treated several areas with the acid to see what would happen with them, and I wrapped one foot with a Una boot, to see if that helped (some one on the blog suggested that). My Romanian contact there was going to return in a week and check on things. When he returned the next week, he found the man was gone. His mother said that on the previous Friday, an ambulance had come to their home (they live in a rural area) and said they had come for him. They loaded him up and took him away. Neither he nor his family had called for an ambulance. He was gone about a month. He is back home now (he returned home just before Easter). He was in a hospital in Bucharest where they mainly did tests, as far as he knew they did not diagnose anything. The medical system here is not very forthcoming with information in general, not just in this case. He thinks that he will be going back in May. They did cut many more of the growths off his hands and they look much better. They did nothing to his feet. I think it is a great improvement. I think what you did on the web sight was very good and helpful, I was impressed. I will send you my newest pictures."

"As far as sending money, I left money with my contact there. So far, none of it has been spent. I would be concerned about giving him or his family money directly. I don't think that would be a good idea. If money was needed for the medical treatment, I could see that it reached the right hands, but at this time there does not seem to be a need for additional money for them. It does not appear that any of the anti viral drugs mentioned [in the blog post's comments] have been used and do not appear to be readily available here, I would like to have them and be able to offer them to the doctors treating him, but currently do not have a source for that. If someone was able to get them in the US, I could give you an address in the US [email me for address and info] to send them to, and the next person that I knew of would be coming to Romania could hand carry them to us here. The Romanian postal system is very unreliable, so I would not trust it with the meds. If someone wanted to donate for medical needs (in Romania) we would happily administer the funds, but at this time there does not seem to be a need for additional money for Ioan. Please feel free to write and ask more questions if you have any or ask for updates in the future."

When I first posted this story, I kept names, faces and even locations out of it as requested. Although now it appears now that the man's plight has made a few Romanian news outlets. You can see those stories (with some great additional photos) here, here and here (a very rough Romanian text translation program can be found here - if anyone else can provide an exact translation, please do). The man is under the primary care of Dr. Carmen Madeleine Curea, the primary dermatologist at Spitalului Clinic Colentina (in Bucharest), as well as some other specialists. Although they aren't saying much about what they have discovered, or even if his condition is precedented at all, at the very least he appears to be being cared for, and his condition is being kept under control.

(click each photo for larger view)

Comments

I thought you might find these links interesting. The first one has a picture of a gentleman whose hands look very similar to the pictures seen on here:

http://www.nature.com/jid/journal/v111/n5/fig_tab/5600195f1.html?url=/jid/journal/v111/n5/full/5600195a.html#figure-title

The second one has pictures of two young boys who have a buildup of keratin on their feet similar to the man's hands.

http://www.ispub.com/ostia/index.php?xmlPrinter=true&xmlFilePath=journals/ijd/vol3n2/kerato.xml

To be honest, we can make guesses at what is causing the hyperkeratinosis on his hands, but it would be hard to identify the exact cause without a dermatologist or pathologist testing the growths on his hands. I wonder if there is a research dermatologist at a university out there who might be willing to analyze some samples for this gentleman?

[LOL]

THIS IS SIC

[Lynda Appell]

I certainly hope this Romanian man and the Indonesian man gets the effective treatment they need. BTW My original family name is Apelu. That's Romanian. I doubt I'm a relative of this poor soul. However being from pretty much the same ethnic background I do feel deeply sorry for him.

[Sela]

Click on my name to see the link below, with an update on Dede from Indonesia, who has had several surgeries. The American doctor (Gaspari) is now being allowed to work with the Indonesian authorities.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2008/04/16/wtree116.xml

[Dave]

Hey,

That undoubtedly is fungus.

I strongly reccomend a combination of high dose natural antifungals combined with a wide range of high dose systemic enzymes. Even consider sodium bicarbonate.

[J]

Regarding uneducated, SlimZ, it would sound like you are an american. I am also an american, and recognize that the US is most likely lower on the charts than Romania. It is not a matter of education, but a matter of politics that usually causes such opinions to manifest. I suggest that you keep a somewhat tighter leash on what you say. This man has suffered for most of life with this condition, and I don't think it would hurt you at least recognize that. Also, if you didn't notice, Health Care is the United States is an oxymoron, like jumbo shrimp, or civil war, or intelligent SlimZ for that matter. Good Day.

[Kess]

Some of the comments on this page disgust me, this is a real-life, medical disorder of a human being. This man is not a freak, but a patient. He should not be pitied, and should not be mocked, he should be helped and treated; what disgusts me most is not the lack of knowledge displayed by certain persons on this page, but their contempt and lack of compassion for a fellow human being.

[maeby]

there are a bunch of articles online about a man named Dede or "The tree man of Java" who is being treated for a very similar looking condition. His is caused by warts rapidly growing on his body as his immune system is not able to fight them off.

check it out. it looks like the same thing x100.

[Nail Care]

Thank you very much for the great information.

Thanks
Nail Care

[John]

I have now read about this man alot lately. I have learned that there are 2 different stories on how this man was found and who treated him. I read the growths were removed by surgery, not by some one using a drimmel drill to grind them off. Some one is not telling the truth here.

[John]

Now that I have read more, looks like there may be 2 different people. Could be an intresting find.

[Thom]

There have been cases the same as this, much worse in fact. a Man dubbed "tree man" was found in east Asia it is diagnosable and treatable. google Tree Man and Telegraph for a full video diary of his treatment. It should help.

"After testing samples of the lesions and Dede's blood, Dr Anthony Gaspari of the University of Maryland concluded that his affliction is caused by the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), a fairly common infection that usually causes small warts to develop on sufferers.
Dede's problem is that he has a rare genetic fault that impedes his immune system, meaning his body is unable to contain the warts.
The virus was therefore able to "hijack the cellular machinery of his skin cells", ordering them to produce massive amounts of the substance that caused the tree-like growths known as "cutaneous horns" on his hands and feet.
Dede's counts of a key type of white blood cell are so low that Dr Gaspari initially suspected he may have the Aids virus.
But tests showed he did not, and it became clear that Dede's immune condition was something far rarer and more mysterious."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1569156/Tree-man-'who-grew-roots'-may-be-cured.html

[Maria Serban]

'Romania has joined the EU [...] I suspect it's a bit of a culture shock for them. Imagine Haiti suddenly becoming the 51st State of the US.'
Your arrogant ignorance and racism repel me. Inform yourself more on Romania.

The topic of this blog entry is also pervaded by a frustrating stereotyping of Eastern Europe, it perpetuates those negative shallow stereotypes about 'bizarre' Eastern Europe many Americans harbor. The way it is written detracts me from possible discussions about serious issues like people's health.

[Maria Serban]

'Romania overall is uneducated. I wouldn't want medical treatment there for anything, I wouldn't even take my pet there to get care. poor guy'

You must have been pumping your brain full of mindless ignorance for some time... Inform yourself more about Romania.
A renowned surgeon from a hospital in 'uneducated Romania' operated Ioan Toader and is responsible for restoring his hands and feet to normal: his name is Ioan Lascăr, and it is thanks to him that now Ioan Toader can live and work like he had used to before the appearance of the disease:

http://www.acasatv.ro/noutati-acasa/emisiuni/la-povestiri-adevarate-imagini-in-exclusivitate-de-la-operatia.html

[Maria Serban]

'Romania was a neo-Stalinist regime so far out there that even the USSR eschewed attempts to seriously influence it'

Inform yourself about Romania and learn to distinguish between propaganda and confused statements and facts.

Romania was opposed to Soviet influence especially since the Soviet Union co-opted two provinces in northeastern Romania in the Forties, so in Romania there was a general hostility against the Soviet Union. Even though a member of the Warsaw Pact, Romania managed to pursue a path of greater autonomy without Soviet interference in Romania's internal affairs, and in 1968 Romania was the only Warsaw Pact member which refused to invade Czechoslovakia.

Romanian and Soviet interests diverged also from an economical point of view:
'As early as 1958, but becoming particularly pressing into 1962, Khrushchev called for a supranational planning body within the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (CMEA) with the power to order member states to invest in and produce certain goods. CMEA was established in 1949 as the Soviets reply to the Marshall Plan, but remained dormant throughout Stalin's rule. Khrushchev led East Germany, Poland, and Czechoslovakia in support for greater division of labor within the organization, seeking to sublimate Romania and Bulgaria into agricultural bases for the bloc, allowing the developed members to produce manufactured products.

As the developed states applied increasing pressure upon Bucharest to coalesce, Gheorghiu-Dej's regime pursued a policy of national heavy industrial development, independent of its neighbors' wishes. In the November-December Central Committee meeting of 1961, Gheorghe Gaston-Marin, the Chairman of the Planning Committee, first articulated Romania's independent economic policy, affirming Romania's right to plan its own economy and opposing supranational pacts in opposition to such goals. In 1961 and 1962, Bucharest demanded economic support from Moscow beyond the latter's capability and will to supply it. One specific source of friction occurred when Gheorghiu-Dej sought Soviet financing and capital to build a steel mill at Galati, a proposition the USSR refused because the enterprise would have required expensive mining and transportation costs. As a result of the Soviet refusal, Gheorghiu-Dej's regime turned to the West for its steel mill machinery. A French and British consortium agreed to the transaction, damaging Soviet prestige as the economic leader of its bloc. The policy of massive industrial development reached success, as Romania boasted the highest levels of industrial growth in Eastern Europe in 1961. By 1962, Moscow and Bucharest held "diametrically opposite" stances with respect to the integration of CMEA, and the tension only increased.'

http://goliath.ecnext.com/coms2/gi_0199-3573640/For-want-of-rubber-Romania.html

[R]

Hello,

To the missionary who is in contact with this man:

Please research online about the tree-man and you will find the answers for this case; apparently vitamin A (injected) and acid acetylic for eliminating the growths from the skin surface, may be the solution.
The Indonesian man has been already treated by the same condition with the help of an American doctor (God bless him) who strongly believed that the solution is to eliminate the cause, not the effect like the Romanian and Indonesian doctors used as an approach.

http://abcnews.go.com/Primetime/popup?id=5536783&contentIndex=1&start=false&page=2

Please try to contact the American Doctor.

And for the mediator: PLEASE eliminate the vulgar text posted by a very cruel person.

A Romanian living in US.

[R]

I am apologizing for the error in the previous posting; the skin treatment used for the “tree man” was Salicylic Acid.

[Ffoeg]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DStwXsmZ3OE

Shows a case that looks similar to this. It may be completely unrelated but the physical appearance is the same.

[Brei]

These are warts, crush aspirin (salicylic acid) into powder, mix slightly with water until a thick paste is formed and apply daily. The warts will start to dry up and die, then fall off. In fact if you look carefully you can see the acid eating through wart and leaving the flesh, kinda gross.

[Cathy]

I think we should all feel very lucky with what we have.

[Decebal]

Hello my dear jack-offs wo think that Romania is an unducated country.The stuff is that we are not as renown as the old dear Uncle Sam, a country formed by slave traders and a lot of immigrants bundled up in a stu with no national identity whatsoever...And about our healtcare... it sucks i know because we have puppets for leaders... but people like me are trying to make a difference... for people like him to be cured, and fore a better life for the others. that is the dacian spirit. not Romanian. the guy's problem is a genetic disease.the stuff that grows on hands is tha same tissue that nails and hair are made from, meaning hard fibrous tissue.and i don't condemn a minister for takin care of him if he knows his herbs. naturist therapy is very useful.Hail Dacia

[Account Deleted]

There is another man in Indonesia who is being treated with Vitamin A for something that looks and sounds incredibly familiar. Here is the link to that story.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1569156/Tree-man-who-grew-roots-may-be-cured.html

[Tara]

You might want to contact Dr Anthony Gaspari, a dermatologist at the University of Maryland, who is currently working on the case of the "human treeman" who has a simmilar bizarre skin condition, which seems to be an accelerated papilloma virus(or Epidermodysplasia Verruciformis). If someone has already recommended this- sorry! I didn't have time to go over everything. The conditions just look very simmilar.

[sela]

Ion seems to be doing extremely well two years later!!!

Use Google translate to read this but the video gives you the idea:
http://www.acasatv.ro/emisiuni/omul-pasare-este-acum-un-om-perfect-sanatos-munceste-si-isi-cauta-nevasta.html

If only Dede could get that same treatment.