An Indonesian fisherman who feared that he would be killed by the gnarled tree-like growths covering his body has been given hope of recovery by an American doctor. Dr Anthony Gaspari believes that he has diagnosed Dede's rare condition Dede, now 35, baffled medical experts when warty "roots" began growing out of his arms and feet after he cut his knee in a teenage accident. The welts spread across his body unchecked and soon he was left unable to carry out everyday household tasks. Sacked from his job and deserted by his wife, Dede has been raising his two children - now in their late teens - in poverty, resigned to the fact that local doctors had no cure for his condition. To make ends meet he even joined a local "freak show", parading in front of a paying audience alongside victims of other peculiar diseases. Although supported by his extended family, he was often a target of abuse and ridicule in his rural fishing village. But now an American dermatology expert who flew out to Dede's home village south of the capital Jakarta claims to have identified his condition, and proposed a treatment that could transform his life. After testing samples of the growths, Dr Anthony Gaspari of the University of Maryland believes that Dede's affliction is caused by the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), a fairly common infection that usually causes small warts to develop on sufferers. Rare genetic faults in Dede's immune system allowed the warts to spread, leaving him in the condition he is in today. Dede with his teenage daughter. He fears that his two children may also become infected Dr Gaspari, who became fascinated by the rare case in a Discovery Channel documentary, has now offered Dede a programme of free medical treatment that he is hopeful will allow at least a partial recovery. "Dede is a forlorn, yet intelligent man trapped in a body encased in warts," Dr Gaspari said. "He hopes for help from modern medicine. This man has been crippled by this infection, yet has been able to exist because of the caring nature of his extended family in a rural fishing village. "Despite their lacking a formal education, the village members have engineered a number of creative solutions to his special needs, which is quite impressive. This situation is something that we all can learn from." "Half Man Half Tree", part of the "My Shocking Story" series, will be shown on the Discovery Channel at 9pm on Nov 15. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/12/wtree112.xml
That is one of the strangest things I've ever seen; it's amazing how conditions like that are even possible...