VietNamNet Bridge – A man named Nguyen Dinh Chieu, 50, in Ngoc Tao commune, Phuc Tho district, Hanoi has had to live in the figure of a “demon” since his birth.
Chieu was born in a farmer family in Ngoc Tao, a poor commune in Ha Tay province (now Hanoi). He was normal at birth but several days after that, a protuberance which was as big as a soybean appeared on his head. The protuberance grew with the child. When Chieu was five, that protuberance was as big as a marble and it began to make the boy painful.

Chieu’s parents took him to a local hospital where doctors cut off the protuberance. Everything was normal for a period of time until real misfortune came to the boy. A group of small protuberance grew at the scuff of neck. They developed very fast and spread to the boy’s back, stomach, limbs and face.

In several weeks, Chieu’s body was covered by a different skin which was lumpy like toad skin. The boy’s parents again took Chieu to the local hospital for treatment. Chieu stayed in the hospital for a time but doctor could not cure the strange disease.
Chieu was brought to other hospitals but the disease was not cured. Doctors said this is a rare disease. Since then Chieu has been living with his toad skin. The strange disease has turned an agile boy into a bleary man. He now earns his living by collecting waste.

Happiness smiled to this unfortunate man. He met Vu Thi Mo, 49 now, and they got married in 1987. They have two daughters. However, happy time was very short. After a brain accident, Chieu’s wife has been paralyzed while his second daughter is mental-impaired.

This family now relies in Chieu’s waste collecting job.


BDVN