Arlin, a man from California who lived with a “melon-sized” tumor at the back of his head for over a decade, has finally undergone a procedure to remove it.
+ Click to see the before and after of Arlin’s surgery
The 33-year-old man participated in the show Take My Tumor on the TLC channel, where he met Dr. Ryan Osbourne, a head and neck specialist. The doctor discovered that he suffered from hidradenitis suppurativa, also known as inverse acne.
This condition is described by the NHS of the United Kingdom as a “painful, long-term skin condition that causes skin abscesses and scarring.” Symptoms vary, but it can cause a mix of boil-like lumps, blackheads, cysts, scars, and channels in the skin that leak pus, which typically occur near hair follicles where sweat glands are located.
Arlin particularly suffered from the problem as he also has anhidrosis, a rare condition that prevents sweat glands from producing sweat. Because of this, he had to use a fan around his neck to cool down during the hotter months.
In addition to wearing a cap to hide the tumor, Arlin told Dr. Osbourne that he had to use towels to protect his clothes from the discharge coming from his neck. In an episode that aired in May this year, the doctor explained that the removal of the tumor was urgent due to its size and weight.
“At a certain point, you will have problems with your cervical spine. Your head is constantly leaning forward, we need to straighten it out. The first step in this process is to remove this. It will be a large section of skin coming from the back of the scalp and neck. We can’t just leave that area raw back there; it’s a very large area and it will get infected,” Dr. Osbourne said in the episode.
The doctor explained that to solve this problem, he would need to remove a section of skin from Arlin’s abdomen to transplant it to his neck. Despite the delicacy of the procedure, the surgery was a success.
Arlin was very happy with the results and explained that he is “much better” since the operation. “I’ve had more energy, less pain, less depression. The surgery was a huge change in my life. It’s a big relief not to feel so much pain or have to worry about fluids getting into my shirts or anything like that, having to wear caps,” Arlin celebrated.
“When my head is completely healed, I want to start doing more things. Go back to school, get a job. I’m looking forward to having this thing completely healed and finally getting rid of it,” he added.
Photos: YouTube @TLC publication. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.