Watch incredible transformation of woman with enormous 77lb growth after surgeons removed tumour that hung to her knees
A VIDEO shows the incredible transformation of a woman who had a massive 77lb tumour removed from her uterus.
The growth was so large it looked like a beach ball protruding from her stomach, and it hung down to her knees whenever she stood up.
Li Qingfeng, from China's southern Guangdong province, was diagnosed with a uterine fibroid in 2012.
Fibroids are non-cancerous growths that develop in or around the womb and tend to be made up of muscle and fibrous tissue.
They tend to vary in size, but Li's grew so large it expanded her waistline by 56in (143cm) - over four and a half feet - over five years.
As Li was relying on a disability allowance from the Chinese government, she couldn't afford treatment for the fibroid.
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But she also couldn't walk or sleep because of the pain.
Tang Hongsheng, a gastroenterologist at the Affiliated Cancer Hospital and Institute of Guangzhou Medical University, told : "Li's condition was very serious.
"When she stood up, the tumour went down to her knees.
"I compressed her veins, which caused severe swelling in her lower limbs.
"She had trouble eating, as the tumour also compressed her stomach and intestines."
Footage shows Li even struggling to get comfortable as she tried to lie down under the sheer weight of the growth.
She was finally able to go to the hospital in 2017, after receiving help from charitable organisations.
She was examined by more than 10 medical experts and was able to undergo surgery to remove the tumour, which took a whopping eight hours.
The growth was so large, doctors struggled to lift it out of Li.
Dr Hongsheng said: "I remember it took three doctors to move the tumour when it was taken out.
"The tumour weighed 34kg (77lb). Beside that, 3.5kg of ascites were also removed from her stomach."
Ascites are a buildup of fluid in the abdomen.
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A medical team from the hospital visited Li four years after she had the growth removed, in 2021.
They brought along ultrasound equipment for a check-up.
Miraculously, medics found no new tumours.
Dr Hongsheng said he'd felt it was his "duty" to treat Li.
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"But for Li, the surgery not only cured her disease, but also gave her a happy life," he said.
Li praised the doctors as "very kind";, saying she now had a "healthy body and a better life".