Man raises $37K to remove 45kg testicle

Man raises $37K to remove 45kg testicle
PHOTO: Man raises $37K to remove 45kg testicle

For 10 years, Mr Dan Maurer has lived with a big problem.

He has an unusual and painful condition where one of his testicles became abnormally large. It weighed about 45kg.

The Daily Mail reported that Mr Maurer, who is from Battle Creek, Michigan, has been suffering from scrotal lymphedema. It is an extremely rare disease that is caused by blockage of the lymphatic vessels. Tissue builds up outside of the testicles, resulting in swelling.

The 39-year-old man said his relationship with his wife of 20 years, Mindy, has also suffered - they have not been intimate in seven years because of his illness.

Mr Maurer first realised that something was wrong when he was in his 20s. Doctors only told him that he had to lose weight. He said he swam about 3.2km daily and lost about 22kg.

But his scrotum continued to expand.

"The bigger it gets, it seems to me like the faster it grows. When he stands, it almost hangs to his ankles," his mother, Connie, told My Fox Detroit.

Mr Maurer consulted physicians but got the same answer. They said he needed to lose more weight. He eventually fell ill and was hospitalised with a broken cyst inside his oversized scrotum.

But he found out what was wrong with him only when he watched the TLC reality TV show, The Man With The 132 Pound Scrotum. It was about Mr Wesley Warren Jr, who had a similar condition. Mr Warren, 49, died in March this year due to complications from diabetes.

Dr Joel Gelman, a California-based urologist who operated on Mr Warren in April last year, agreed to do the surgery for Mr Maurer. But the urologist is not in his medical network and the procedure is not covered by his insurance.

So Mr Maurer launched a campaign on the GoFundMe website to raise funds and his story went viral two months ago.

Mr Maurer was able to raise almost US$30,000 (S$37,460) for the operation. He underwent the surgery late August in California. Despite the risks, he was excited about the prospect of having sex with his wife for the first time in seven years.

Mr Maurer is also looking forward to doing more travelling and riding a jet ski.


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