Good. Poor kid didn't have much of a quality life up until now considering the excessive growth & the accompanying problems.

FTFA: The extraordinary condition is caused by a fault in Brenden's DNA and he is the only person in the world known to suffer from it.

This being the case, the kid at least has the solace of knowing that he's going to have a medical disorder named after him. That's quite a legacy. I mean, look at what it did to Lou Gehrig's career!

I'm curious, has anyone come across a reference to which gene is responsible on chr12?

DO NOT WANT Poster Girl: I'm curious, has anyone come across a reference to which gene is responsible on chr12?

Bean unavailable for comment

Poor kid... I don't know what I'd do knowing I may only have a few years left to live. Especially at that age when it's not even something you can easily comprehend.

I feel sorry for the mom, always explaining, I mean this kid was 8 and was probably 6 feet tall. Plus she never knows if he is going to die some day soon due to this thing.

Gotta love pituitary conditions
..ok, not really

His 12th chromosome broke off during embryonic development, flipped around and reattached itself upside down, disrupting a gene that controls growth.

Wow. That is just, wow.

I don't know which is more bizarre, that it could happen, or that doctors could figure out that it had happened.

He's the Wolfling!

BKITU: DO NOT WANT Poster Girl: I'm curious, has anyone come across a reference to which gene is responsible on chr12?

Thanks, reminded me of my favorite
"Onion" blurb. (^)

Poor kid. He was probably always "it" for Hide & Go Seek because where is a six foot eight year old going to hide?

wow, I feel for the kid. I was 6ft tall when I was 12 years old, and ended up just under 7ft. Of course I did it to myself by drinking a gallon of milk every day until I was 18 or so, but I have an idea of what he's gone through and what he'll have to deal with in life. It's better to be too tall than too short, I suppose, but when you get over 6'5" or so society isn't designed to fit us.

/ceiling fans suck

Big Dave: I did it to myself by drinking a gallon of milk every day

?

Big Dave: wow, I feel for the kid. I was 6ft tall when I was 12 years old, and ended up just under 7ft. Of course I did it to myself by drinking a gallon of milk every day until I was 18 or so, but I have an idea of what he's gone through and what he'll have to deal with in life. It's better to be too tall than too short, I suppose, but when you get over 6'5" or so society isn't designed to fit us.

/ceiling fans suck

Well in his case it'd have likely killed him early or led to a lifetime of medical problems (probably still may but less so).

so what your saying is "Twelve year old screwed out of guinness world record"



NOT YOURS

Hmm, a full fledged new dominant genetic trait? And Creationists say there's no new information added.

/Yeah, I went there
//Bevets won't be looking

Big Dave: It's better to be too tall than too short, I suppose, but when you get over 6'5" or so society isn't designed to fit us.

It's funny you say that because I've always said my life would be much more inconvenient if I'd have grown 1-2 more inches.

/6'4"

wildcardjack: Hmm, a full fledged new dominant genetic trait? And Creationists say there's no new information added.

yes a new one ... that will most likely cause your death.

berylman: Gotta love pituitary conditions
..ok, not really


TLC has a couple of shows on the tallest people in the world. One of the newer ones featured a 7 ft+ tall woman in China, and in most of the people they featured, their condition was due to a tumor or other problem with the pituitary gland.

Unfortunately, one of the world's tallest women named Sandy passed away earlier this month I believe.

Anyways, at least the doctors figured out what was wrong with this boy and have done their best to halt it. If he passes away it will be very sad of course, but it's great his family is doing all they can to help him have a life.

Bootysama: Big Dave: It's better to be too tall than too short, I suppose, but when you get over 6'5" or so society isn't designed to fit us.

It's funny you say that because I've always said my life would be much more inconvenient if I'd have grown 1-2 more inches.

/6'4"

Meh, you could have joined the WWE. Not so bad, except for the whole sweaty man on man thing.

^^^^NTTATWWT

FTFA:at four months he had all his teeth,

I bet there was some shocked nipples in that nursery.

Jgsublime: NOT YOURS

If his treatment is radioactive, maybe he'll at least get to keep the glow-in-the-dark features.

Why did Lurch bleach his hair?

/poor kid
//srsly

Biggest johnson in the third grade FTW

One of the nice things about being incredibly short is that I rarely bump my head on things. I thought the ceiling fan comment was funny, because I hang things off my ceiling fan and it apparently bugs the shiat out of my taller friends. It didn't never really occurred to me.

That being said, the end of the article was way sad. I can't imagine having heart problems at such a young age.


I could definitely use a tall person on hand though to reach things on the top shelves :(

/5'1"

I shouldn't comment on fark at 5am. Either the "didn't" or the "never" needs to be scratched out of my previous comment.

"Complications with the condition - including fatty tumours, one which is on his brain, painfully enlarged joints, a heart condition and bleeding problems - mean he has no idea how long he has left to live."

He'll fit right in.

he'll be buying booze and cigarettes for his friends in the near future if not already.

Bigsigh: It didn't never really occurred to me.

*head asplodes*

Gobobo: Bigsigh: It didn't never really occurred to me.

*head asplodes*

Late

Troo: Gobobo: Bigsigh: It didn't never really occurred to me.

*head asplodes*

Late

1/5

The fatty tumor aspect is not good. Single fatty tumors, called lipomas, can be disruptive. When they grow in cluster forms, they're really not good. Along with the other joint enlargement issues, heart probs, etc., I hope that this young person has good support and smart, caring parents who can keep him as comfortable and as relaxed as possible.

poopalacarte: No Robert Wadlow pics yet? For shame.


Bob in 1932, age 14 and 7'6".

Lucrative NBA career? What, because every team needs a 7 foot white stiff on the bench?

1. Can you imagine the amount of caloric intake this kid needed growing up?

2. His treatment with testosterone would not completely stop his growth. The testosterone to estrogen conversion through reductase actually is what "causes" the growth plates to fuse. I would bet that he will probably continue to grow but at a much slower rate. He probably is also sporting a very large johnson because of the surge of testosterone injections.

Good news is that at such a young age he will probably be on testosterone replacement therapy for his entire life and combined with nutrition and weight training he may actually be a athlete at some point as long as his joints have not been completely fubared.

Testosterone treatments to induce puberty? 7' tall and hasn't reached puberty yet?

/disproportionately small hairless ween
//to be followed by massive "growth surge"
///5' tall fellow sixth-graders can get a mouthful of WIN without stooping down

Kenny George.

that is all.

/Go Bulldogs!

oryx Quote 2008-08-31 09:39:44 AM
Lucrative NBA career? What, because every team needs a 7 foot white stiff on the bench?


If those crazy doctors hadn't screwed it up he could have become an 8 foot white stiff!

Big Dave: wow, I feel for the kid. I was 6ft tall when I was 12 years old, and ended up just under 7ft. Of course I did it to myself by drinking a gallon of milk every day until I was 18 or so, but I have an idea of what he's gone through and what he'll have to deal with in life. It's better to be too tall than too short, I suppose, but when you get over 6'5" or so society isn't designed to fit us.

/ceiling fans suck

and i thought it hurt when i bonked my head on low hanging lamps on the ceiling fans at 6'7", you have to worry about the blades

it just dawned on me the hell this kid has to go through

When I had my largest growth spurts i was usually in pain from what felt like my bones outgrowing the rest of my body

and likely he goes through something like that almost all the time

The porn this kid will make is gonna be epic.

DO NOT WANT Poster Girl: I'm curious, has anyone come across a reference to which gene is responsible on chr12?

Looks like us Liters have to do all the heavy lifting:

Link (new window)

Am J Hum Genet. 2005 February; 76(2): 340-348.

From the abstract: "[P]ericentric inversion of chromosome 12, with breakpoints at p11.22 and q14.3.... His chromosomal inversion was found to truncate HMGA2, a gene that encodes an architectural factor involved in the etiology of many benign mesenchymal tumors and that maps to the 12q14.3 breakpoint"

thelordofcheese: The porn this kid will make is gonna be epic.

Miss Stein: "He vould have an enormous schwanzstucker!"

All I have to add is:

Penis.

/That is all.

Bean unavailable for comment

I came here for this. Thank you, GAT_00!!!!

DO NOT WANT Poster Girl: I'm curious, has anyone come across a reference to which gene is responsible on chr12?

(clicks profile) Oh, a computational person -- and former NMR geek, huh? And you've had dinner with Kibo? I am not worthy...

BTW, I am a reformed protein crystallographer myself.

Big Dave: wow, I feel for the kid. I was 6ft tall when I was 12 years old, and ended up just under 7ft. Of course I did it to myself by drinking a gallon of milk every day until I was 18 or so, but I have an idea of what he's gone through and what he'll have to deal with in life. It's better to be too tall than too short, I suppose, but when you get over 6'5" or so society isn't designed to fit us.

/ceiling fans suck

Nah, your body probably craved all that milk BECAUSE you were going to be tall (:

I'm sure it sucks though, if your very small or very large its hard to get around.

Although I understand how important it is to focus efforts on stopping the growth, I'm just curious if any of the doctors were smart enough to accommodate the growth while they were trying to figure this thing out. Now, I don't mean encourage the growth itself, but I do mean making sure this kid was given ungodly amounts of calcium and nutrients not to mention enzymes and other catalysts to speed their metabolic process, I have to think if that were done along with rigorous daily exercise, this unfortunate young man may not have had quite as many health issues. Hell, he may have come to rule us all. Also...penis.