They Called Him Diabetic, but This 60lb Surprise Was Growing Inside All Along!

After over a decade of being told he was just overweight, Thomas Kraut had a 60-pound cancerous tumor removed—a tumor that grew undetected for years as doctors mistakenly treated him for obesity.

Thomas, originally from Germany and residing in Oslo, Norway, endured 12 years of doctors’ advice to lose weight. They prescribed weight-loss injections, diet programs, and nutrition classes, but none of it reduced his expanding stomach. It was only when doctors were preparing him for gastric sleeve surgery that the truth came to light.

“I had lost so much weight with the change in diet and Ozempic that my face and arms were very thin,” Thomas, now 59, explained. “The doctor even said that I was actually malnourished.”

The optician, who had moved to Norway in 2008 with his wife Ines—a healthcare professional—began noticing health issues in 2011. His stomach kept growing, but each medical visit led to the same response: weight gain. In 2012, he was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and obesity, reinforcing the notion that weight was his only issue.

The real shock came 12 years later. Finally, a CT scan revealed a massive tumor. Thomas recalls, “It was a real shock for me. My kidney was affected because the tumor was feeding on my right kidney.”

Doctors diagnosed him with a rare fatty tumor composed of multiple cancerous cells encased in fat. A lengthy, challenging 10-hour surgery followed to remove the tumor, which weighed an astonishing 27 kilograms (60.18 pounds) and spanned over 20 inches in diameter. The tumor’s damage was so extensive that Thomas lost part of his small intestine and his right kidney.

The ordeal was not over. Thomas still has some cancerous tissue in his body. “I go to a psychologist for therapy every two weeks,” he shared. “I have to go to the oncologist twice a year because I still have tumor tissue inside me that is growing. I was told that it cannot be removed because it is connected to several organs.”

Frustrated with the years of misdiagnosis, Thomas and Ines are now pursuing legal action. They have filed a lawsuit against the medical professionals who overlooked the potentially fatal tumor. Initially, the case was dismissed, as doctors argued the rarity of the tumor made it difficult to detect. However, Thomas’s lawyer has since objected to the dismissal. “My lawyer has lodged an objection,” he said. “It will work out somehow.”

Thomas’s story is a powerful reminder of the importance of persistent healthcare advocacy and the potentially severe consequences of medical misdiagnosis.