Liver pills turn black man white

A black man who was given tablets for liver disease has won �15,000 after they turned him white.


Mr Kahsay after taking the tablets

The skin of Tekeste Kahsay, 59, has turned white, except for a patch of skin across his face.

Mr Kahsay, originally from Eritrea but now living in Sweden, says he feels like a black man trapped in a white man's body.

Mr Kahsay was badly injured as he worked at a sawmill in Lidkoping. Blood tests revealed the first stages of liver disease which could have proved fatal.

He was prescribed a drug which saved his liver but had astonishing side effects. His skin became increasingly light until he was white except for a dark "mask" on his face and ears. He has been shunned and attacked because of his strange appearance.

He said: ''This is terrible. I disappeared. I was a black man inside and a white man outside. My self-confidence is gone."

Mr Kahsay won �15,000 from a medical tribunal, The Mirror reports.

The doctor who treated him is reported to be off work with severe psychological problems. In Mr Kahsay's homeland, he is shunned as a leper, as white pigment is considered a sign of the disease.

He added: ''I am a black man and will always be a black man but I don't know who I am. But I have learned a lot about intolerance towards people of another colour.''

Ananova

This raise questions about what makes us who we are. Can you imagine looking like a different race than you are? You'd be the same inside. How much of what we look like make us what we are?

Only �15,000!

Looks so much like the disease vitiligo

What Is Vitiligo?

Vitiligo (vit-ill-EYE-go) is a pigmentation disorder in which
melanocytes (the cells that make pigment) in the skin, the
mucous membranes (tissues that line the inside of the mouth
and nose and genital and rectal areas), and the retina (inner
layer of the eyeball) are destroyed. As a result, white patches
of skin appear on different parts of the body. The hair that grows
in areas affected by vitiligo usually turns white.

You know, curme, when I was little my mom did church work that involved going to the local nursing home and doing sunday school lessons and just spending time with the residents. There was an albino black man there...he was young (I mean 40-50's) and had lived there for years and years. He had no one who would claim him...he wasn't accepted in the black community, and he wasn't accepted in the white community. That was 30 years ago mind you, but it was very sad.

Why? Michael Jackson is the living argument!

all the money that MJ spent on operations and doctors... all he had to do was get these pills...

If people who posted the last two posts had some maturity in them they wouldn't have made such jokes in this type of situation.

Surf

I agree it sounds and looks like vitaligo which strikes anyone - black or white. It's usually less severe, but can cover the face. A man who lives locally I've seen many times is black, and has vitaligo spots around his eyes that make him look as if he is wearing a mask. It's not so uncommon. Usual places for vitaligo are the hands, feet and face.

It's unfortunate that the article implies that what makes this man "black" is just his skin color. I would have though it to be more a culture and identity thing than simply skin color. Does losing pigment make you less of a person or change your identity?

And a fun FYI on melanocytes: people are born with roughly the same number of melanocytes that produce pigment, but genetics determine just how much melanin these cells make and thereby influencing skin color.

Anyhow - what the article blurb above didn't say is HOW this drug caused the condition. Skin color other than yellow jaundice isn't something that's changed by the liver. Vitaligo is also not liver related. Coincidence? Probably.

Oh and for the record - Michael Jackson seems to have a psychological disease, not a physical one like vitaligo. I'd put money on it.

Hmm reading this thread brought up a memory of my great aunt. She grew up in Texas in the 40's, she lived in a very small town and they were the only black family for miles.

I remember seeing photos of her when she was a teenager. She had brown spots like this man as well, but she always said it was from something to do with her liver. She was teased all the time, she even got insults from her father. And about when she turned 25 her skin was the color of a caucasian.

I had never heard of vitaligo either, but thanks for the thread I can do some digging and see what I can find out.

I'm curious now.

Oh and for the record - Michael Jackson seems to have a psychological disease, not a physical one like vitaligo. I'd put money on it.

Your saying micheal jackson somehow "thought" himself white ??
The mind is a powerful thing, but gimme a break!

what? M. J. used a kind of black-to-white injection.

Just take a look at the Videos..with Jackson5 he�s a normal afro-american child...then think to the "Thriller" musicvideo..he looks much "brighter"...and now? ..like a zombie...sorry

I thought Sweden was supposed to be a tolerant country or is his only problems with acceptance in his native land, where he is considered to be a leper. There was an albino Negro living in my neighorhood in New Orleans. One night I saw some black kids calling him a white man. He responded by telling them that he he had a black [member].

wow, the guy in the picture almost looks as if his facial structures were really caucasian. Intriguing.

See, we're all white on the inside. I'am sure the KKK will use this somehow as propaganda...

lol.

I think it's kinda funny though..

Deep

Poor guy, came over so many racist boundries just to end up white.

Man, I can't stop laughing, my stomachs killing me.

I'am sorry....it's just so wierd....

Deep

Originally posted by instar

Oh and for the record - Michael Jackson seems to have a psychological disease, not a physical one like vitaligo. I'd put money on it.

Your saying micheal jackson somehow "thought" himself white ??
The mind is a powerful thing, but gimme a break!

No, I'm not saying he "thought himself white."

Where'd you get that he thought himself white? Give ME a break. Psychological diseases lead people to have issues with self image, self perception, and work towards things that the rest of us consider strange. I would definitely call all the plastic surgery he has had done a psychological disorder, and the aparent desire to have caucasian features and skin to be a psychological disorder also.

Originally posted by RedBalloon

Originally posted by instar

Oh and for the record - Michael Jackson seems to have a psychological disease, not a physical one like vitaligo. I'd put money on it.

Your saying micheal jackson somehow "thought" himself white ??
The mind is a powerful thing, but gimme a break!

No, I'm not saying he "thought himself white."

Where'd you get that he thought himself white? Give ME a break. Psychological diseases lead people to have issues with self image, self perception, and work towards things that the rest of us consider strange. I would definitely call all the plastic surgery he has had done a psychological disorder, and the aparent desire to have caucasian features and skin to be a psychological disorder also.

Thanks for the clarification, you might have said that to begin with MJ certainly has lots of phsycological disorders! Then again, is a womans desire for a bigger "rack" a disorder? how man a guy who wants to look like Arnie? where do you draw the line? What about freedom of expression?