Half man, Half Tree

I just saw this advertised for viewing on the discovery channel. I used the search function and it appears this has not been discussed yet. Please move this if it is not in the correct area, but I thought mythical beasts was the most appropriate.

www.discoverychannel.co.uk...

i232.photobucket.com...

This appears to be genuine! Could it be some sort of fungal infection?
He said it first started growing when he was 15, and they tried to cut it, but it just grew back faster. Thoughts?

I saw the documentary on this guy.

In the end when he was offered help for his condition, he turned it down, because it makes him a living.

Ama

He's actually currently undergoing treatment for this.


He's had several surgeries, and his feet have been whittled down to almost normal proportions, and he's regained minimal use of his hands.

Link to Article

LOL WTF! I don't even want to get in to the preparations needed to be half man- half tree. His dad must have been a lonely lonely man.

As I recall he got a cut from a tree one day while walking. he didn't think much of it and soon he started sprouting something similar if not the same as bark.

Moral of the story. Always use dis-infectant.

All well and good to use disinfectant, but remember a lot of people in Indonesia don't have access to such luxuries as health care.

Thats good he got treatment. Ot must have been an old doc. I watched.

Ama

reply to post by RagenCajun


I'm pretty sure you are joking. But I must post my rebuttal. I've seen this doc and the actual cause of this is HPV(the virus that causes genital warts and cervical cancer), combined with a severely depressed immune system. He is not the only one that suffers from this, I have seen vids of at least 3 others.

The man from that picture is different than the one I remember that had the same thing though.

However he did not turn into a tree. He got cut by a plant that caused growths to appear on his body, kinda like giant warts.

edit: the post above me was not there when I was writing my post lol.

[edit on 2/10/08 by -0mega-]

With all his problems and the difficulty he must have doing ANYTHING with his hands, the one thing I remember from Watching the special was that he was smoking a cigarette in a lot of the scenes!

I'm sincerely happy about the fact that Dede is finally getting the medical attention he so desperately needed. I watched a documentary on him and his condition on TLC a while ago, and I was touched deeply by his plight.

However, there's nothing paranormal about his condition. Certainly, it's shocking and more than a little bit unnerving, but it's a perfectly natural and treatable medical condition.

Its all over you-tube...its funny though b/c the other day i was surfin you tube and came across some videos of him. from what the videos said, his condition is linked to warts or somethin of that nature. he is undergoing treatment, and has enough use of his hands to hold a peeled banana on his own and eat it.

it looked freaky strange, at first i thought it was a hoax until i saw his treatment vids....

somethin new is created everyday that will kill a person, and now people are turning into trees, life is so damn twisted

Half man, half tree eh! I remember him. His name was Ash. He often lost his temper but his bark was worse than his bite. In his early days he had a huge crush on Twiggy but he had trouble getting wood! Last I heard of him he was branching out into other fields.

All joking aside, I hope he finds help soon.

What in the hell is wrong with that country? How is it possible for anyone to sprout wooden limbs and start growing them out of your feet and hands? Jesus christ, so weird.

Does anyone know if this infection is life threatening. I feel bad for the guy.

Originally posted by susieseahag
Does anyone know if this infection is life threatening. I feel bad for the guy.

Apparently he'll be alright as long as he doesn't catch Dutch Elm disease!

Originally posted by -0mega-
The man from that picture is different than the one I remember that had the same thing though.

Yeah, it isnt the one we discussed a year ago here on ATS.

Originally posted by susieseahag
Does anyone know if this infection is life threatening. I feel bad for the guy.

I believe it is not. I've also seen several people with this illness, and they seem fine, although a bit hindered.. And It definately looks like an epidermis condition.

Originally posted by Deus Ex Machina 42
What in the hell is wrong with that country? How is it possible for anyone to sprout wooden limbs and start growing them out of your feet and hands? Jesus christ, so weird.

You have to be a bit more open, just because it looks like wood doesn't make it wood. Its a simple cancer.

Originally posted by IrvingTheExplainer
With all his problems and the difficulty he must have doing ANYTHING with his hands, the one thing I remember from Watching the special was that he was smoking a cigarette in a lot of the scenes!

Yeah, cause if you were being eaten away by a horrid disabling form of warts your first priority would be to stop smoking! Makes sense to me!

What is your point?

And for the record I enjoy most forms of morbid humor, but seriously this guy is truly suffering in so many ways, it is not something to joke about. The best docs in the world cannot "fix" him, he has a serious immune deficiency (not likely acquired by nefarious behavior), and I do not think laughing about it is very nice.

He is in treatment now but yes he did pass up the chance for treatment before because he was able to earn a few bucks in a freak show, and he really needed the money so his family could survive.



[edit on 2-10-2008 by Sonya610]

It's an overgrowth of the same type of thing as a cutaneous horn. We watched the documentary in anatomy last year. Pretty much the keratin in his skin went out of control.

Well it seems like there's 3 different theories about what caused it. I am just saying the one my friend told me who read up on it. Someone also said Keratin and another person insinuated I was a fool with his own take. Which may or may not be correct.