Life

‘Fat’ Man Prescribed Ozempic—Until Docs Realized He Had a 60-Pound Tumor

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(Photo by Douglas Cliff / Getty Images)

Imagine doctors labeling you “fat,” only to learn you’ve actually been growing a 60-pound tumor—for 12 years.

This was the case for a Norwegian man named Thomas Kraut who experienced a growing stomach that was steadily expanding from a 60-pound malignant tumor. Doctors diagnosed him with type 2 diabetes and obesity, prescribing him Ozempic—all while cancer continued to flourish inside of him.

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Kraut, 59, was all set to have a gastric sleeve operation for his alleged “obesity” when doctors realized he wasn’t, in fact, overweight. Instead, he was malnourished while carrying a giant malignant tumor.

“The doctors only ever talked about being overweight and diabetes,” Kraut explained, per the New York Post. “I was given Ozempic for diabetes and before the gastric sleeve I had to attend nutrition and fitness courses for several years.” 

Finally, after over a decade of being misdiagnosed and mistreated by medical professionals, doctors noticed that Kraut’s stomach was hard. 

“[The tumor] pressed on my stomach. It was hard and not soft, as is the case with fat,” Kraut told the New York Post. “In addition, I had lost so much weight with the change in diet and Ozempic that my face and arms were very thin. Only my stomach was huge. The doctor even said that I was actually malnourished.” 

Once doctors made this realization, they ordered a CT scan to check for the actual culprit—which ended up being a 60-pound cancerous tumor.

“It was a real shock for me,” Kraut said.

The tumor required a 10-hour surgery for its removal, which Kraut received in Oslo, Norway. Unfortunately, due to the misdiagnoses and years of allowing the cancer to grow, Kraut had to have parts of his small intestine removed, as well as his right kidney. Even after all that, he still has cancerous tissue inside his body.

And, of course, he’s dealing with the major mental toll this took on him.

“I go to a psychologist for therapy every two weeks,” Kraut said, per the New York Post. “I have to go to the oncologist twice a year because I still have tumor tissue inside me that is growing. I was told that it cannot be removed because it is connected to several organs.”

He has filed a lawsuit against his doctors, which was initially dismissed due to the rarity of the tumor and difficulty in detecting it. However, “My lawyer has lodged an objection,” Kraut said. “It will work out somehow.”