MEXICO CITY – The world’s heaviest man, weighing almost 600 kilogrammes (1,300 pounds), has undergone successful gastric bypass surgery in Mexico.
The procedure on Juan Pedro Franco is intended to reduce his weight by half, and is expected to be followed up with another operation.
“The surgery was quite successful. But now we have to wait and see how he responds to the (systemic) change. Let’s hope everything goes well,” his surgeon Jose Castaneda said.
“Franco is being closely monitored,” Castaneda added.
Franco, who at his peak tipped the scales at 595 kilogrammes, was told that in order to be eligible for surgery, he had to lose a large amount of his initial bulk. He also had to get his diabetes and blood pressure under control.
When the second procedure is done, likely in November, Franco’s stomach size will be reduced and his intestines modified.
Mexico’s Manuel Uribe, who in 2007 held the record for being the world’s heaviest man at 597 kilogrammes, died last year.
Egyptian Eman Ahmed Abd El Aty, who was believed to be the world’s heaviest woman, recently underwent gastric bypass surgery in India.
Doctors said her treatment, which also included a modified diet, helped her lose 323 kilogrammes in three months, to stand at around 177 kilogrammes.
