"Has It Been 8 Years?" Shocked Doctors... Man Survives After Swallowing 12cm Chopstick

Removed After Eight Years Through Minimally Invasive Surgery

There is growing interest in the story of a Chinese man who endured for eight years with metal chopsticks lodged in his neck.

On March 20 (local time), Hong Kong media outlet South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported the case of a Chinese man, referred to as Mr. A, who underwent surgery earlier this month. Mr. A had survived for eight years with a 12-centimeter chopstick embedded in his neck, but recently had it surgically removed.

Eight years ago, while eating, Mr. A accidentally swallowed a metal chopstick. Although the doctor who examined him recommended open surgery, Mr. A refused, explaining that while he was experiencing pain, he had no trouble breathing.

Metal chopsticks embedded in a man's neck. Captured from Baidu

Since then, Mr. A occasionally felt a foreign body sensation, but because he regularly drank alcohol, he dismissed the discomfort as a typical hangover. However, over time, the pain worsened, especially in the mornings and when swallowing food, eventually prompting him to return to the hospital.

The medical staff at Dian City Central Hospital said, "The patient told us there was a chopstick in his neck, so we thought it was a recent incident. We were surprised to learn it had happened eight years ago."

A detailed examination revealed that the metal chopstick Mr. A had swallowed eight years earlier was lodged in the soft palate area at the back of his throat, just behind the roof of his mouth. Fortunately, the surrounding mucous membranes were not damaged, and his vocal cords were functioning normally.

Mr. A continued to refuse open neck surgery. Ultimately, the medical team decided to attempt a minimally invasive procedure to remove the foreign object with the least possible incision. They succeeded in extracting the chopstick through the oral cavity with minimal bleeding. After surgery, the man quickly recovered his health and was discharged.

After Mr. A's story became public, Chinese netizens expressed astonishment with comments such as, "How did he endure for eight years?", "It's amazing he didn't die," and "Is it even possible to swallow a chopstick?"

Meanwhile, there have been other cases in China where people have continued to function normally even after swallowing large foreign objects. Last year, a 64-year-old man from Anhui Province underwent surgery to remove a toothbrush he had swallowed as a child. It was reported that he had kept this secret from his parents for 52 years after the accident.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.