Rare phosphorus-guzzling tumour left Dongri man bedridden for 3 yrs

Whenever 51-year-old Mohammed picks up his walker to step out of his home in Dongri, he remembers the damning diagnosis given by many of the 30-odd doctors he consulted until a year back: you will never be able to walk.

Mohammed (not his real name) was bedridden for three years till he could stand a couple of months back, thanks to doctors at BMC-run KEM Hospital's endocrinology department in Parel. His problem began when he was 44 and injured his ankle. The "pain" at his ankles soon spread to his thigh, hips and arms.

"I consulted some of the best orthopedic doctors in the city in the first few years of my pain," said Mohammed. The usual rounds of tests revealed low levels of phosphorus and he was given supplements accordingly, but the readings never got normal.

As his bones became softer, he couldn't stand and was confined to bed. Then in December 2021, his brothers were advised to take him to endocrinologists at KEM Hospital.