Tag Archives: medical disorders

Teen’s ‘pulled muscle’ turned out to be deadly cancer

December 29, 2022 Admin Leave a comment

It nearly turned into a deadlift.

A UK gym shark who thought he pulled a muscle while working out was flabbergasted to discover that the lump was actually a cancerous mass.

“The lump was quite big and about the size of an apple,” Tomas Evans, 18, told Kennedy News of the tumor.

The exercise enthusiast, who hails from Wrexham, Wales, had noticed a painful, apple-sized bump after a weight training session in June, but initially thought that it was just a “gym injury.”

“I went to the gym and two days later woke up with a big lump on my shoulder and it was causing me really bad pain,” Evans said. “I thought it had just been a muscle that had come out of place or something and it wasn’t.”

“It [the diagnosis] is a weird moment to describe because it didn’t really hit me straight away, it was kind of later on,” recalled Tomas Evans.

Kennedy News and Media

Although his booboo seemed innocuous, the Welsh lad’s concerned mother Rachael Tudor took her son to the doctor. They subsequently referred him to get shoulder and chest X-rays, and eventually a CT scan, which revealed something sinister.

While Tudor initially also thought her gym junkie son had just damaged something, she became alarmed after “he received a letter through the post to go in to discuss his results.”

“I instantly knew something wasn’t right,” said the distraught hospital technician, who later learned the “heartbreaking news” that her pride and joy had a “a mass the size of a fist in his chest.”

“He went straight for blood tests and a biopsy to see what exactly it was and we were faced with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma or testicular cancer,” she lamented. “We came home and cried for the whole two weeks waiting on the test results.”

The cancerous mass in Evans’ chest had caused the lump to appear on his collarbone.

She added, “It was the most horrendous two weeks of our lives as the crippling anxiety of what on Earth we were facing was awful.”

Their worst fears were confirmed in July after doctors diagnosed Evans with Stage 2 Hodgkin lymphoma, a type of cancer that affects the lymphatic system, which plays a role in the body’s immune function. The disease makes white blood cells, also called lymphocytes, grow out of control, causing swollen lymph nodes and tumors throughout the body.

Hodgkin’s lymphoma is the most common cancer diagnosed in adolescents ages 15 to 19, according to Cancer.org.

The teen was devastated by the news. “It [the diagnosis] is a weird moment to describe because it didn’t really hit me straight away, it was kind of later on,” he recalled. “When they first told me there was ‘something there’ it was a shock but when they said what it actually was, I kind of knew what it would be, I had a feeling.”

“Getting the news your son has a mass the size of a fist in his chest is something no parent wants to hear, it was heart-breaking,” said mother Rachael Tudor, 38 (right).

Evans’ case was particularly difficult to diagnose as he exhibited no symptoms besides his collarbone lump — seen in accompanying X-rays — which was caused by the mass in his chest. Nonetheless, doctors believe he’d caught the tumor early as it had formed at the beginning of the year.

In order to combat the disease, the aspiring electrician started chemotherapy in September, Kennedy reported. Salvation came five weeks ago after his scans revealed that he was cancer free, but he nonetheless “decided to do the treatment until the end of February just to make sure that it’s gone everywhere.”

While he might’ve tested cancer-free, Evans said the chemo took its toll on his body. “I had to take a year out of college and stop work and being able to go out places is a lot more difficult now because I’m at a high risk of infections,” he said. “I get tired quite easily walking around places and just doing normal things, especially closer to when I’ve had the treatment as well.”

Evans had initially chalked up the lump to a pulled muscle.

In addition, the chemo has made Evans more susceptible to immune disorders. “Thomas has ended up in hospital a few times poorly with neutropenic sepsis and the worry of him catching infections has been our primary concern this time of year,” said his mother.

Despite the hurdles, Tudor said she’s glad “he’s on track and doing well,” adding that she is “so proud of him and how he’s coped.”

She even created a GoFundMe page to raise funds so her son and girlfriend Morgan can take a vacation to celebrate him completing treatment. They aim to donate the rest to a charity that helps lymphona sufferers.

Evans with his mom Rachael Tudor and sister Ava Tudor, 11.

In light of his epic saga, Evans is cautioning the public against ignoring even innocuous-seeming symptoms.

“I’d tell others who have symptoms to go and get checked out because I didn’t know, only that I hurt myself, otherwise I still wouldn’t know,” he said.

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Health

Teen’s ‘pulled muscle’ turned out to be deadly cancer

December 29, 2022 Admin Leave a comment

It nearly turned into a deadlift.

A UK gym shark who thought he pulled a muscle while working out was flabbergasted to discover that the lump was actually a cancerous mass.

“The lump was quite big and about the size of an apple,” Tomas Evans, 18, told Kennedy News of the tumor.

The exercise enthusiast, who hails from Wrexham, Wales, had noticed a painful, apple-sized bump after a weight training session in June, but initially thought that it was just a “gym injury.”

“It [the diagnosis] is a weird moment to describe because it didn’t really hit me straight away, it was kind of later on,” recalled Tomas Evans.

Kennedy News and Media

While Tudor initially also thought her gym junkie son had just damaged something, she became alarmed after “he received a letter through the post to go in to discuss his results.”

She added, “It was the most horrendous two weeks of our lives as the crippling anxiety of what on Earth we were facing was awful.”

Hodgkin’s lymphoma is the most common cancer diagnosed in adolescents ages 15 to 19, according to Cancer.org.

Despite the hurdles, Tudor said she’s glad “he’s on track and doing well,” adding that she is “so proud of him and how he’s coped.”

In light of his epic saga, Evans is cautioning the public against ignoring even innocuous-seeming symptoms.

“I’d tell others who have symptoms to go and get checked out because I didn’t know, only that I hurt myself, otherwise I still wouldn’t know,” he said.

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Health

Man’s swollen testicle filled with ‘dancing worms’

December 13, 2022 Admin Leave a comment

This brings bizarre new meaning to the term “ballroom dancing.”

A 26-year-old man in India revolted the internet after it was revealed that his swollen right testicle was caused by microscopic worms that had infiltrated his scrotum.

Footage of the parasites “dancing” in the man’s private part is currently going viral online.

“On ultrasound examination (shown in a video), moving structures were seen within a dilated lymphatic channel [thin tubes that transport fluid and white blood cells in the scrotum],” doctors wrote in the case study of the incident, which was published in the New England Journal of Medicine‘s latest issue.

The case study reported to the Max Super Specialty Hospital in New Delhi after experiencing “pain and swelling in the scrotum and low-grade fevers” for a month, per the study.

“On examination, there was tenderness and swelling of the right side of the scrotum,” study authors wrote. Subsequent ultrasound scans revealed that the Delhi native had tiny dancers boogying about in his nether region, as seen in the family jewel footage.

Doctors diagnosed the man with lymphatic filariasis, commonly known as elephantiasis, “a neglected tropical disease” that occurs when a mosquito bite infects the patient’s system with a species of microscopic roundworm, according to the World Health Organization.

Doctors diagnosed him with lymphatic filariasis, commonly known as elephantiasis, “a neglected tropical disease” that occurs when a mosquito bite infects the patient’s system with a species of microscopic roundworm, according to the World Health Organization. These tiny nematodes cause fluid to block off the lymphatic system, paradoxically causing the scrotum and other body parts to balloon up to pachyderm-esque proportions, hence its nickname.

The aforementioned display was known as “filarial dance sign,” caused by the “undulations of live worms that have migrated into lymphatic channels, causing dilation and dysfunction,” per the study.

The patient was lucky the doctors discovered his testicular infiltrators early. Generally acquired in childhood, elephantiasis symptoms manifest later in life, and often result in permanent disabilities.

Thankfully, doctors were able to evict the man’s scrotal squatters with a three-week regimen of an anti-parasitic drug. When the patient returned, the worms had disappeared completely.

In a much more serious elephantiasis case in 2018, doctors in India removed a whopping 30-pound lump from the leg of a man suffering from the affliction.

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Health

Study reveals who is at higher risk for AFib

September 1, 2022 Admin Leave a comment

New research has found women are at a shockingly higher risk for developing atrial fibrillation than men are — flipping conventional beliefs that males were more susceptible.

Researchers from the Smidt Heart Institute at Cedars-Sinai are reporting in the journal JAMA Cardiology that women, when height is accounted for, have a 50% higher risk of developing the abnormal heart rhythm disturbance over men, according to Science Daily.

“This is the first study to show an actual flip in the risk of atrial fibrillation,” said Dr. Christine Albert, a senior study author who chairs the Department of Cardiology in the Smidt Heart Institute.

AFib is the most common type of abnormal heart rhythm and could lead to a stroke or heart failure if not properly treated. When a woman suffers from AFib, she is more likely to experience one of those two severe outcomes instead of men, according to the outlet.

New research shows women are especially susceptible to AFib.

Getty Images/iStockphoto

New research shows women have a higher risk for a specific heart condition.

Albert’s findings are based on a nationwide heart rhythm trial called VITAL where a quarter-million people had been studied.

According to the doctor, “In this population of 25,000 individuals without prior heart disease, after adjusting for differences in height, women were at higher risk for developing AF than their male counterparts — upward of 50%.”

Albert has also found that the taller an individual is, the more at risk they become.

“Our study, however, surprisingly suggests that if a man and a woman have the same height, the woman would be more likely to develop AFib,” Albert said. “Now the question has changed: Instead of why are women protected, now we must seek to understand why women are at a higher risk.”

Patients are commonly treated with blood thinners for AFib, but could also opt for heart surgery. However, women “are less likely to undergo invasive treatments for AFib such as ablation,” Science Daily reported.

Ablation is a procedure that “uses heat or cold energy to create tiny scars” that help to “restore a typical heartbeat,” according to the Mayo Clinic.

A new study on AFib reveals surprising facts about the condition, especially for women.

By 2030, more than 12.1 million Americans are going to come down with the condition, according to the publication. Albert pontificates that this is due to a general increase in the population.

“With incidence on the rise, it’s more imperative than ever to be offering preventive strategies and early diagnostic interventions to all patients,” Albert said.

She advises the best preventive measures for AFib include keeping a healthy weight, routine exercise, keeping tabs on blood pressure and limiting one’s drinking.

“These lifestyle modifications are important to those at risk for atrial fibrillation, but also important modifications all women can consider to prevent other heart-related conditions,” said Dr. Noel Bairey Merz, director of the Barbra Streisand Women’s Heart Center in the Smidt Heart Institute.

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Health

I’m allergic to gravity and spend 23 hours a day in bed

August 30, 2022 Admin Leave a comment

She’s certainly not defying gravity.

A young woman who is “allergic to gravity” is speaking out about her debilitating condition, claiming she spends 23 hours a day in bed and is unable to stand upright for more than three minutes without passing out.

Lyndsi Johnson, 28, suffers from postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome — a condition that creates reduced blood volume and an abnormal increase in heart rate when a person stands or sits up.

“I’m allergic to gravity,” Johnson told South West News Service in an interview about her unusual illness. “It sounds crazy but it’s true.”

“I can’t stand up for longer than three minutes without feeling faint, being sick or passing out,” the Bangor, Maine, resident further explained. “I feel much better if I’m lying down. I’m in bed all day.”

Johnson was working as an aviation diesel mechanic for the Navy in 2015 when she began experiencing symptoms of POTS.

Lyndsi Johnson, 28, suffers from postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome — a condition that creates reduced blood volume and an abnormal increase in heart rate when a person stands or sits up.

Courtesy Lyndsi Johnson / SWNS

Johnson (left) worked as an aviation diesel mechanic for the Navy before she was medically discharged in 2018.

The young recruit suffered severe back and abdominal pain, and soon began fainting on a regular basis.

“It was really scary,” Johnson recalled, saying doctors initially believed she was experiencing “anxiety.”

“I was passing out everywhere,” she stated. “I would be shopping at the supermarket and I had to sit down because I felt faint. I’ve even passed out after my dog has barked.”

The super-fit Maine resident was used to being on her feet all day before she began experiencing symptoms of POTS.

Johnson underwent a “tilt” test to determine if she had POTS.

In May 2018, Johnson was medically discharged from the military due to her mystery illness, but her symptoms only worsened.

By early 2022, she was unable to keep food down and was projectile vomiting on a regular basis.

“I’d throw up so much my heart would start having prolonged QT intervals and I’d be in the hospital on cardiac monitoring,” the mechanic revealed.

A cardiologist subsequently theorized that Johnson might have POTS and suggested she undergo a “tilt” test — during which the patient is secured to a table while lying down and the table is slowly tilted upright, with doctors monitoring heart rate, blood pressure and blood oxygen and exhaled carbon dioxide levels.

In February, she was officially diagnosed with the syndrome.

Johnson was officially diagnosed with POTS in February of this year. She spends 23 hours a day lying down in bed.

“It’s really debilitating,” Johnson said. “I can’t do chores and [my husband] James has to cook, clean and help me shower and wash myself.”

While there is no cure, she now takes beta blockers, which reduce her fainting to three times a day and help with her nausea.

However, she is still unable to live a normal life and relies on her husband, James, to be her caregiver.

“It’s really debilitating,” she said. “I can’t do chores and James has to cook, clean and help me shower and wash myself. I’ve gone weeks without brushing my teeth because it just makes me feel awful.”

The ex-mechanic — who used to pride herself on being super active — says the diagnosis feels like “the rug has been ripped from under my feet.”

A determined Johnson is now pursuing a music business degree from the confines of her bed, and hopes to be able to get back to work — in a job where she can work remotely and lie down.

“I’ve really had to adapt to this new life,” she declared. “I can’t do a lot of what I used to be able to, but I’ve come to terms with that now. I’m grateful for what I have.”

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Technology

Iranian man has water bottle removed from anus

July 15, 2022 Admin Leave a comment

This guy really did have something up his butt.

A married man from Iran is recovering after doctors removed a 7 ½ inch water bottle from his rectum.

The suspect suppository was discovered after the 50-year-old arrived at the hospital with his wife, who grew concerned once he stopped eating and began to suffer from abdominal pain and constipation.

The man continued to successfully hide his painful secret, right up until it was revealed to doctors via CT scan.

According to an article in the Clinical Case Reports Journal, the man avoided mentioning that he’d inserted the object himself, due to “embarrassment,” and “fear of his wife.”

The case study said that he had inserted the bottle with the bottom going in first, in order to use the top as a grip to pull out.

The yellow arrow shows exactly where the water bottle was located.

But when the time came to do so, the unfortunate object wound up trapped in the man’s large intestine.

Doctors at the Imam Khomeini Hospital in Sari did not mention why exactly how the bottle got stuck there, but did say that sexual gratification is usually behind these sorts of situations. The man was also known to have a history of depression, according to the Clinical Case Reports.

He was rushed to emergency surgery to remove it. Surgeons were able to slowly drag the bottle out without causing damage to the intestine.

The unfortunate adventurer was discharged three days later and referred to a psychiatric clinic.

The man was reportedly back to normal and experiencing no problems one month later.

Water bottles are just one of the many foreign objects doctors report having to remove from the rectums of males worldwide aged 30 to 40.

According to medical professionals, similar cases have been reported in men around the world aged 30 to 40. Other objects retrieved from the anus include light bulbs, bottles, truncheons, body spray cans and turkey basters, they said.

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Health

Woman allergic to everything, even laughter

July 4, 2022 Admin Leave a comment

She could literally die laughing.

Natasha Coates suffers from a rare condition in which anything from sweating to laughing can trigger a potentially fatal allergic reaction — an affliction so dangerous she planned her own funeral at 20.

Despite her debilitating disease, she has managed to excel at gymnastics and become an online inspiration to others with the ailment.

“I’m allergic to strong emotions,” said the UK survivor, 27, of her harrowing saga in videos posted to her popular Instagram and TikTok accounts. “Any changes to my body’s status quo — whether I’m laughing, crying, sad or stressed — can cause a chemical reaction.”

Coates specifically suffers from mast cell activation syndrome, a rare immunological disorder in which a person experiences “repeated severe allergy symptoms affecting several body systems,” according to the American Academy of Asthma, Allergy and Immunology.

The Nottingham native recalled one instance where she almost literally died laughing, describing: “We were having a good laugh when my tongue and throat swelled up.”

“In MCAS, mast cells mistakenly release too many chemical agents, resulting in symptoms in the skin, gastrointestinal tract, heart, respiratory, and neurologic systems,” experts at the Genetic and Rare Diseases Information Center reported.

“One friend called an ambulance, while another helped me use my EpiPen to stop me choking and suffocating to death,” Coates told the Mirror. “They stroked my hair, telling me I’d be OK as I lost consciousness before being whisked into intensive care. Quite the end to a night out.”

Natasha Coates has to walk on allergenic eggshells to avoid triggering anaphylaxis.

Instagram/@natashacoatesgb

“In my body, my cells are hypersensitive,” Coates explained while describing her condition in a recent documentary titled “The Girl Who’s Allergic to Herself.”

“So they release an excess of these chemicals at the slightest trigger, for example food or exercise or heat or being stung. And sometimes they release chemicals when there’s no trigger,” she continued. “If they release enough of these chemicals they can send me into anaphylactic shock, which can be potentially life-threatening.”

As a result of her MCAS, the embattled athlete experiences reactions nearly every day and has been hospitalized over 500 times.

Coates experiences allergic reactions to laughter, her own tears, growing her hair, changes in the weather, food and digestion.

“When I feel it starting, I get upset and try to suppress it, otherwise I’ll have a worse reaction — it’s a vicious circle,” lamented Coates.

The Brit’s MCAS first reared its head when she was younger and would have strange reactions to food, which her family initially dismissed as hypersensitivity.

Then, at 18, Coates experienced her first anaphylactic attack. “I was at a big public event when I suddenly felt shaky, dizzy and found it hard to breathe,” said the petrified youngster athlete. “I was taken to hospital with a police escort.”

She added, “I was unconscious, so I missed all the excitement, but when I came round in hospital I was frightened.”

Despite the life-threatening episode, doctors assured Coates that this was normal, leaving her thinking she’d experienced a “once-in-a-lifetime reaction.”

It wasn’t until two years later — and countless reactions, many of which landed her in the emergency room — that the poor gal was finally diagnosed with MCAS.

Needless to say, life became a living hell. “I’m allergic to body sprays, cleaning products and scented candles,” Coates explained. “Eating is still a bit like Russian roulette.

“A food that’s fine today could give me an allergic reaction tomorrow,” added the unfortunate sportswoman, who had initially tried to identify the offending foods. Pretty soon, she’d whittled her diet down only chicken, potatoes and broccoli, which caused her to become malnourished.

Coates hasn’t let her condition stop her from competing in gymnastics. She has won over 20 British titles and 30-something British medals in the Disability British Championships.

“I can cope with anything but I’m allowed to have bad days. There’s no point pretending it’s OK — because I’m not OK with it. If I could click my fingers and be cured, I’d do it instantly.”

Natasha Coates, 27

Not to mention that her self-imposed eating regimen ultimately proved futile. “Because of the chemicals released when I’m digesting food, sometimes it’s not what I’m eating but the digestion process that triggers anaphylaxis,” rued Coates.

She analogized living with MCAS to a “ticking time bomb,” describing: “It’s frightening for my family, wondering which reaction is going to be my last.”

Eventually, the youngster said she came to “accept that this condition could kill me.”

“I planned my funeral aged 20,” Coates said, detailing the seemingly morbid measure. “I know that’s not normal but by being organised, I know I’m having a Beyoncé song!”

Thankfully, she has since implemented protocols to prevent the worst from happening, including taking medication to mitigate reactions, making sure each member knows how to use an EpiPen and even employing “assistive technology.”

“If I press a button on my watch, the lights on the front of my house change to red and an ambulance is called,” said Coates. The brave gal was even able to move out of her parents’ house and live on her own — albeit with a personal assistant by her side five days a week.

Coates said that “keeping myself alive is a full-time job.”

“I do have to avoid social situations sometimes,” she said. “I go on a risk versus reward basis. I study menus beforehand, take extra medication and hope for the best. I need to know where the nearest hospital is, that I’ve got my care plan and enough medication.”

Interestingly, despite her myriad allergenic triggers, Coates has reportedly found salvation in gymnastics, which she says saved her both physically and mentally.

This naturally poses risk, however, due to both the sweating and the fact that physical activity messes with her senses.

“The chemicals released in my brain when I exercise cause me to lose my elbows down to my knees down,” explained Coates on TikTok. “So when I catch the high bar I can’t actually feel myself catching the high bar.”

She added, per the Mirror: “So when I whack my shin on the beam, there’s a big bump — and any injury can cause a reaction. I badly damaged my knee in 2019 and went into anaphylaxis.”

“In my body, my cells are hypersensitive,” Coates explained while describing her condition in a recent documentary titled “The Girl Who’s Allergic to Herself.” “So they release an excess of these chemicals at the slightest trigger, for example food or exercise or heat or being stung. And sometimes they release chemicals when there’s no trigger.”

Nonetheless, the trailblazing gal, who competes in the Disability British Championships, has set a high bar in the sport, amassing over 20 British titles and 30-something British medals, per the documentary.

Describing why she competes despite the potential for injury, the competitor described: “The only people who tell me I should stop gymnastics are those who don’t understand me. It gives me so much more than it takes away. The allergic reactions will happen anyway, even if I’m sitting at home doing nothing, so I may as well be out living my life.”

While certainly an inspiration, the flip wizard ultimately wishes she wasn’t afflicted with MCAS.

“I can cope with anything but I’m allowed to have bad days. There’s no point pretending it’s OK — because I’m not OK with it. If I could click my fingers and be cured, I’d do it instantly.”

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Health

Martial arts teacher loses half her skull due to sinus infection

March 29, 2022 Admin Leave a comment

A California martial arts instructor had to have half her skull removed after an unchecked sinus infection metastasized throughout her brain. She detailed her cranial catastrophe in a harrowing video with over 7 million views on TikTok.

“Surgeons told me I would have been dead within a week if I hadn’t gone to the hospital when I did,” Natasha Gunther, 25, told News Dog Media of the harrowing ordeal.

A before-and-after video, captioned “Sometimes all you can do is laugh right?,” shows the long-haired karate enthusiast sitting in a car before surgery. It then cuts to a pic of the gal post-op, in which she sports a pronounced dent in her head where surgeons had to extract part of her cranium.

The fiasco began in late 2021 after the judo blackbelt reported to the doctor after experiencing an unusual uptick in sinus infections over the previous year.

“Surgeons told me I would have been dead within a week if I hadn’t gone to the hospital when I did,” said Natasha Gunther.

@natasha_gunther/News Dog Media

Gunther noticed an uptick in sinus infections last year.

Gunther’s parents eventually forced their daughter to get a CT scan after she started “throwing up a lot and having horrible migraines.”

“I had about five to six of them,” explained Gunther, who usually only suffered from congestive afflictions once per year. She specifically suffered from sinusitis, a nasal ailment that occurs when there’s “irritation in your sinuses, which make up the lining around the air spaces between bones that surround your nose,” according to the Cleveland Clinic.

Unfortunately, neither she nor the doctor thought it was serious at the time, and they prescribed her a course of antibiotics — the standard treatment for the condition.

“As most people who get sinus infections will know, you don’t think anything of them, and neither did my usual doctor,” Gunther said of the seemingly innocuous blockage. “I teach martial arts to kids, so I’m used to getting colds.”

“In total, they removed 12-14 cm of my skull and put it into a freezer,” said Gunther.

Gunther before and after her craniectomy

The unfortunately judoka, who now has to wear a helmet to protect her unprotected brain, hopes to get the skull fragment refitted by April.

However, Gunther’s parents eventually forced their daughter to get a CT scan after she started “throwing up a lot and having horrible migraines.”

A subsequent craniotomy — where doctors remove a part of the skull to examine the brain — revealed a massive buildup of strep and staph infections, which had moved her brain nearly a half-inch to the right.

In order to relieve the pressure, doctors performed a more severe craniectomy later that month, in which they removed approximately half of Gunther’s skull.

Gunther thought nothing of the sinus infections at first.

The 25-year-old eventually had to have half her skull removed.

The martial artist says she couldn’t have undertaken the journey without the support of her family, particularly her boyfriend, Joao, who is also a martial arts instructor.

“If you have more than one sinus infection per year or even just a sinus infection, please go to the hospital or the [ear, nose and throat doctor] just to be safe,” she said. “Please just don’t rely on your primary doctor, because it could be serious.”

“In total, they removed 12 to 14 cm of my skull and put it into a freezer,” said Gunther. “I stayed in the hospital for another five weeks, and also had further sinus surgery.”

The unfortunate judoka, who now has to wear a helmet to protect her unshielded brain, hopes to get the skull fragment refitted by April. If this fails, doctors will be forced to 3-D print a replica of the component and insert that instead.

Needless to say, the medical ordeal has made life difficult for Gunther.

Joao is currently helping Gunther with physical therapy.

Gunther in the hospital where she underwent emergency neurosurgery to have half her skull removed

Gunther with her parents, Nicole and Marty

“My life is very different to what it used to be,” lamented the taekwondo practitioner. “I used to have a busy life teaching martial arts and hanging out with friends every day – like any person in their 20s.”

But “when I came out of surgery, I struggled to talk, so I’ve been having regular speech therapy since then.”

The martial artist says she couldn’t have undertaken the journey without the support of her family, particularly her boyfriend, Joao, who is also a martial arts instructor.

“My life is very different to what it used to be,” lamented the taekwondo practitioner. “I used to have a busy life teaching martial arts and hanging out with friends every day – like any person in their 20s.”

A CT scan revealed a bacterial buildup that had displaced part of Gunther’s brain.

In order to relieve the pressure, doctors performed a craniectomy later that month, in which they removed approximately half of Gunther’s skull.

Gunther recently uploaded a video of her embracing her faithful beau with the caption, “My rock through this part of life.”

She says Joao “has been doing a lot psychical therapy so I can get my energy back in my body.” However, the gal claims that certain martial arts moves such as grappling “will be too risky for me to ever do again.”

“But I’m staying positive and I try to have a sense of humor about everything,” explained Gunther, who is currently trying to spread awareness on how harmless-seeming sinus infections can snowball out of control.

Gunther has to wear a helmet to protect her brain.

Gunther practiced martial arts in the days before her life-changing operation.

Gunther will have to forgo grappling and other close-contact arts due to her condition.

Sinusitis usually resolves on its own or with the help of antibiotics, but dangerous complications can arise if it reaches the eyes or brain.

“If you have more than one sinus infection per year, or even just a sinus infection, please go to the hospital or the [ear, nose and throat doctor] just to be safe,” she said. “Please just don’t rely on your primary doctor ,because it could be serious.”

Gunther added, “I don’t want anyone to go through what I did. I have half a head now and you can avoid that!”

“In rare cases, sinus infections in the rear center of one’s head can spread into the brain,” the Cleveland Clinic reported. “This can lead to life-threatening conditions like meningitis or brain abscess.”

“But I’m staying positive and I try to have a sense of humor about everything,” explained Gunther.

“I don’t want anyone to go through what I did. I have half a head now and you can avoid that!” said Gunther.

Indeed, while sinusitis usually resolves on its own or with the help of antibiotics, dangerous complications can arise if it reaches the eyes or brain.

“In rare cases, sinus infections in the rear center of one’s head can spread into the brain,” the Cleveland Clinic reported. “This can lead to life-threatening conditions like meningitis or brain abscess.”

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Health

College student reveals ‘rare’ condition

February 16, 2022 Admin Leave a comment

It’s only pain, no pleasure.

A Colorado college student embodied the expression “love hurts” after revealing that she suffers from a rare semen allergy that causes her to experience “excruciating” pain whenever she engaged in sexual activity.

“Essentially, I’m allergic to sex,” Longmont’s Chloe Lowery, 18, told Kennedy News of her unfortunate affliction, which began when she first started sex-perimenting.

The English major and aspiring professor specifically suffers from human seminal plasma hypersensitivity, in which contact with the proteins in sperm causes her to experience extreme reactions, including redness and a “burning” sensation. Oral sex is particularly hazardous if seminal fluids touch her face, the scholar can even suffer temporary paralysis.

“Essentially, I’m allergic to sex,” said Longmont’s Chloe Lowery, 18.

Kennedy News and Media

“I have had a reaction vaginally and it’s the same kind of deal but instead of numbing, it’s more like a burning and I get really inflamed in that area,” lamented the pained lady, who analogized the feeling to “a million acupuncture needles.”

Lowery explained that she first noticed something was awry during her “third or so sexual experience.”

“I hadn’t had contact with it [semen] before then and it got on my skin and I kind of turned red and I didn’t think much of it as I turn red sometimes,” described the college gal. “But then during another encounter, it was in my mouth and I looked like I had bell’s palsy in half my face for about three hours because I went into facial paralysis temporarily.”

She continued, “It was on the right side of my face, it was droopy and I just couldn’t express emotion at least with my mouth. It kind of felt like when you get a numbing shot at the dentist in your gums.”

“People actually want to know more but of course, they don’t want to do their own research, so they ask me for all the details,” said Lowery.

Thankfully Lowery regained facial function, although she says she has since avoided oral sex to prevent another mishap.

The flummoxed literature buff initially suspected she had a sperm allergy, which sounded outlandish, until she did some online research and discovered that was, in fact, a real condition.

Lowery later reported to the doctor, who confirmed her diagnosis. She also reportedly tested negative for STDs, which further pointed to HSPH as the cause of her symptoms.

Lowery has come to accept her condition.

Surprisingly, this seemingly “counterproductive” condition is not exceedingly rare — affecting one in 40,000 people — but Lowery said her symptoms are likely more pronounced than in most patients.

“I have had a reaction vaginally and it’s the same kind of deal but instead of numbing, it’s more like a burning and I get really inflamed in that area,” lamented the pained lady, who analogized the feeling to “a million acupuncture needles.”

“Every or any time I get semen inside of me it happens. Even the littlest bit, even precum,” explained Lowery. She added that the severity of the side effects depends on the quantity of sperm she’s made contact with, while symptoms can last anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour.

“Every or any time I get semen inside of me it happens,” explained Lowery.

Meanwhile, research has found that HSPH can even induce anaphylaxis, a potentially life-threatening condition also caused by bee stings, peanuts and other allergens.

Fortunately, the sperm-averse gal has been able to mitigate the symptoms by trying to urinate for “good sexual practice” and applying ice to the problem area if needed, Kennedy reported. Condoms also help prevent more serious reactions.

One of Lowery’s biggest concerns, though, was how her sex partners would react to her condition.

Lowery said she first started noticing symptoms during her third ever session in the sack.

“I have to disclose it to partners like ‘by the way, there’s certain things I can’t do because of what I have,’ ” she explained.

Fortunately, as of yet, no one has seemed to mind. “They think that it’s actually more interesting or funny than anything, so it hasn’t caused me any relationship issues,” Lowery said.

“People actually want to know more but of course, they don’t want to do their own research, so they ask me for all the details,” the bemused lady added. “People just don’t even believe it’s a thing because it’s so uncommon or at least it’s not spoken about, so they’re more intrigued than anything.”

“I have to disclose it to partners like ‘by the way, there’s certain things I can’t do because of what I have,’ ” Lowery said.

Lowery has been able to mitigate the symptoms by applying ice to the problem area if needed.

And, Lowery appears to be taking her semen allergy in stride, explaining:

“Once I describe my experience they believe me, but at first a lot of the time people are like ‘no way, that’s a real thing?’ and then they go ‘oh, that sucks’ and I’m like ‘it doesn’t, I live with it, there’s worse things out there.’ “

Unfortunately, HSPH is not the only semen-sparked affliction.

Research shows that some rompers suffer from post-orgasmic illness syndrome (POIS), another alleged sperm allergy that causes fatigue, a stuffy nose and other flu-like symptoms, which begin immediately after the deed is done.

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Health

Broken heart diagnoses on the rise in the US: study

October 19, 2021 Admin Leave a comment

Hearts are breaking at rising rates, researchers have found.

The life-threatening medical condition known as broken heart syndrome is being reported at increasing rates, according to a new study published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Heart Association.

The temporary condition, also known as Takotsubo cardiomyopathy, causes the heart muscle to become suddenly weakened and generally happens following a period of severe emotional or physical stress. While potentially life-threatening, most people recover within two months.

The disturbing study published Wednesday found that both men and women have been steadily increasing broken heart syndrome at rising rates during recent years, with women 50 to 74 seeing the sharpest increases. Indeed, the analysis of 135,463 cases of broken heart syndrome reported in U.S. hospitals from 2006 to 2017 discovered that women make up 88.3 percent of all cases and that older women experienced it at a rate six to 12 times higher than younger women and men.

“These skyrocketing rates are both intriguing and concerning,” senior study author Dr. Susan Cheng told American Heart Association News of her and her team’s findings. They believe that overall stress, the end of menopause and technology might contribute to older women having such uniquely high rates.

“As we advance in age and take on more life and work responsibilities, we experience higher stress levels,” she said. “And with increasing digitization around every aspect of our lives, environmental stressors have also intensified.”

Study authors worked exclusively with pre-pandemic data, but believe that COVID-19 has likely caused a further rise in rates of the condition, one that may be unmeasurable due to many broken hearts going undiagnosed or reported.

“We know there have been profound effects on the heart-brain connection during the pandemic. We are at the tip of the iceberg in terms of measuring what those are,” Cheng told the publication.

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