“Everyone is afraid of me”: his “monstrous” arm weighs 9 kg, the ordeal of Malik, a young 26-year-old influencer

Malik Aftab has had a deformed arm since childhood Instagram Screenshot – Malik Aftab

A young man born with a huge right arm claims that strangers on the street are afraid and move away from him.

The daily life of Malik Aftab, 26 years old, is special. This young Indian from the town of Ghazipur lives with a very rare pathology: his right arm is oversized and deformed. The latter even weighs almost nine kilos.

In the streets of his town, where he does not go unnoticed, the townspeople stare at him. "People are afraid of me because of my monstrous arm", explains the young man to the newspaper "The Sun".

The doctors do not know the reason which caused this malformation to appear. However, they believe that he suffers from Proteus syndrome. This pathology causes disproportionate growth of different tissues, bones or skin in the body.

The disease can also contribute to the development of tumors and cancers. This syndrome has only been diagnosed 200 times worldwide.

A treatment too expensive

Symptoms vary from person to person and usually begin between 6 and 18 months of age. Malik saw several doctors when he was little . But the student says his family can no longer afford the treatment needed for his enormous arm. The strain on his arm also causes him a lot of pain and fatigue.

However, Malik accepts his difference. He has even become a social media star with 194,000 followers on Instagram.