According to a report by Daily Star UK, a baby boy who was born with an extra leg has finally had surgery to remove it.
The 11-month-old, named Ma Yongfei, was born with a thrid leg which belonged to a parasitic twin he absorbed as a foetus.
He was recommended treatment early on but had his surgery delayed due to his family’s money struggles.
But doctors in China have finally operated on the infant and successfully removed his unwanted limb.
He was handed over to Professor Chen Qui, of the Shanghai Public Health Clinical Centre, Fudan University, after his parents were recommended the doctor.
Professor Chen said: “When the child came to me, he was already more than 10 months old.
"In his case, the ideal time to operate would've been at six months, because the earlier the surgery, the better the chances of recovery."
Ma was diagnosed with “pygopagus parasiticus”, a form of foetus in foetu characterised by asymmetric twinning, with the incomplete twin attached to the dominant twin by the hip.
The doctor said the birth defect occurs at a probability of one in a million.
The boy's partially grown twin presented itself as a third leg growing near his genitals, which also affected the function of his own limbs.
Local reports said the youngster was also born with a congenital heart condition.
Following extensive discussions with a large team of doctors and nurses from different departments, surgery to amputate the boy's third leg was carried out yesterday.
Explaining the plan going forward, Professor Chen added: "After removing the leg in the middle, we will begin correcting his right leg. This is just the start. The child will require a lot of long-term corrective treatment.
"At the same time, his congenital heart condition will also require surgery to treatment, so there will be a long road ahead for his family.”