10-year-old Vietnamese girl to have giant ‘turtle shell’ mole removed

The congenigal growth on the back of the 10-year-old girl. Photo: Nguyen Mi

Doctors at Ho Chi Minh City Children’s Hospital 1 have decided to perform a surgery to remove a turtle-shell-like mole on the back of a 10-year-old girl as the result of a rare condition.

Dao Trung Hieu, the hospital’s deputy director, said the surgery for Tran Thi Ngoc Tham of Soc Trang Province, who suffers from congenital melanocytic nevus, is scheduled for August 29.

“We can’t wait until it grows larger,” he told the media Friday, adding that the mole is now around 22 cm across.

“Her case is similar to the famous Columbian ‘turtle boy’ Didier Montalvo who was operated on in the UK in 2014.

“Didier’s was considered to be among world’s rarest birthmarks. Tham is probably the world’s second case of this rare condition.”

Tham’s mother, Thach Thi Da Ni, 34, said she was born with the birthmark measuring the size of “a mandarin orange”, and it has been growing over the years.

Tham quit school after being repeatedly teased by others as the “turtle-shell girl.” She also suffers from sleeping difficulties because the mole is itchy.

When she brought her daughter to the hospital Ni had only VND600,000 (US$27).

The poor woman, who also has a 12-year-old son who is being treated in Soc Trang for appendicitis, is seeking donations to fund the surgery, whose cost is not known.