A young woman from the US was left with enormous growths on her ears after her piercings became infected, which were so heavy they gave her headaches and vertigo.
29-year-old Jennifer, from Philadelphia, had her ears pierced 11 years ago, a procedure many teens go through every day without any trouble.
However, in Jennifer’s case, she began to suffer from four heavy, painful growths on her ears following an infection. Fearful the lumps would continue to grow, Jennifer decided to seek the advice of Dr Sandra Lee (aka Dr Pimple Popper) after other doctors told her there was nothing they could do.
Speaking about her growths in Dr Lee’s clinic, as reported by The Sun, Jennifer revealed:
They are incredibly painful and incredibly heavy. They cause headaches. I’m worried they are going to get bigger…I worry about being ridiculed and mocked.
After examining Jennifer, Dr Lee diagnosed her with extreme keloids, a type of raised scarring which can occur after minor skin damage. For example, with acne spots or when you get a part of your body pierced.
According to the NHS, keloid scars may last for years, and sometimes don’t form until months or even years after the initial skin damage.
Dr Lee cautioned Jennifer her ears might not look ‘normal’ post-surgery, and also warned her of the possibility of her keloid scarring growing back.
Surgery was far from simple. Dr Lee had to remove more of Jennifer’s ear tissue that she had originally planned, using a skin graft to skilfully reshape Jennifer’s left ear.
After Dr Lee managed to remove the keloids, which were found to weigh almost 14 ounces (397g), she said:
They’re probably the biggest keloids I’ve ever seen.
I had to take off more of the ear than expected.
After removal, the four keloids weighed nearly 14 ounces (28g) [sic].
Going forward, Jennifer is now undergoing radiation therapy in an attempt to keep the keloids at bay. She credits Dr Lee with giving her a ‘future’, and thankfully no longer suffers from headaches and vertigo.
Expressing her relief, a much happier Jennifer said:
Everything has changed for the better. No more headaches, no more vertigo. I don’t need to hide. Dr Lee gave me a future. She pretty much saved me.
All the best of luck to Jennifer as she looks forward to life without her keloids.
If you have a story you want to tell send it to UNILAD via story@unilad.com
Jules studied English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University before earning her masters in International Relations at Leiden University in The Netherlands (Hoi!). She then trained as a journalist through News Associates in Manchester. Jules has previously worked as a mental health blogger, copywriter and freelancer for various publications.