Woman with Elephantitis Received Surgery

A 24 year old woman from Jiangsu, Wang Cheng, was all smiles after a successful operation in Taiwan on her rare condition, elephantiasis, which has hit her since the age of six and caused her legs to treble in size to about 50 kilos.

Elephantiasis is the name given to a firm, rubbery, slowly developing swelling of various parts of the body. The legs are most often affected. Also affected are the feet, arms, scrotum, breasts, and vulva. Medical experts say that the enlargement is caused by chronic obstruction of lymph drainage. Examination of the tissues shows that the deeper layers of the skin, with underlying connective tissues, are thickened and changed into a blubbery mass which oozes lymph freely when punctured or cut.