Woman’s Operation Will Remove Needles Designed To Kill Her
Posted September 10, 2007 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
What appears to be a terrible legacy from the past will force a 29-year-old woman to undergo several major surgeries that could put her life at risk. When a Beijing woman named Luo Cuifen discovered blood in her urine, she went to see her doctor. X-rays (left) revealed a horrible truth – her grandparents had allegedly stuck the patient with 23 needles in many of her vital organs when she was just a baby, apparently in the hopes the treatment would kill her.
China has long placed a limit on families to just one child, hoping to control an overpopulation problem. And because ancient tradition favours boys – who are duty bound to look after their parents in their old age – some try to kill off infant girls in the hopes a male heir will be born.
The needles found in Luo’s body are in the worst places possible, including her lungs, liver, bladder and kidneys. That’s going to make their removal extremely difficult and risky. The first operation, scheduled for Tuesday at the the Richland International Hospital in Kunming, will concentrate on the six sharp objects embedded in her abdomen. Some 23 specialists from a wide range of fields will take part – including doctors from Canada.
Luo has suffered from severe depression, anxiety and depression for years, and her condition made it impossible for her to do any physical labour or heavy lifting. For nearly three decades, she never knew why. Now, the truth may well hurt more than the surgeries themselves. But her grandparents will never pay for their apparent actions. Both died long before the discovery was made.
Luo’s X-ray courtesy: Richland Int’l. Hospital
