14 DAY TRIAL // Paul Mason, once dubbed the fattest man alive, has managed to lose 644 pounds (292 kg). The man who used to weigh 980 pounds (445 kg) now wants to undergo a skin removal procedure.
NY Daily News chronicles Mason's adventure as a 50-year-old postal worker with a life expectancy of two years. The man from Ipswitch, England has managed to shed the extra pounds by undergoing surgery.
As we reported in 2011, Mason changed his eating habits after a successful gastric bypass procedure. In the past, he ate 20,000 calories per day, 10 times the recommended amount for an adult.
“I don’t want to go back to the old me. I’m determined to carry on losing weight until I’m a normal size. I’m much happier and healthier now,” he said at the time.
Mason is no longer bound to a wheelchair, but it's all the extra skin left after the surgery that's causing him health issues. He estimates that he needs to shed 112 pounds (50 kg) of flesh.
“My skin splits. The skin behind my knee tears because of the weight of the excess skin,” he describes.
UT Southwestern Medical Center plastic surgery professor Dr. Jeff Kenkel agrees, explaining that bacteria stuck between folds of flesh can cause fungal infections.
“That much skin would affect his joints and his balance. If the apron of skin around his abdomen hangs below his knees, it would get in the way,” he adds.
Mason plans to lose the extra layers of skin in order to regain his mobility and be able to lead a healthy life. Entering a romantic relationship is also part of his long-time plan.
“Once I get rid of the spare skin I also hope to be able to go swimming and cycling and join a gym — and find a girlfriend,” he says.