Bangladeshi girl may be first female with 'tree man syndrome'

A young girl from Bangladesh with bark-like warts on her face could be the first female with so-called 'tree man syndrome'.

Sahana Khatun, who is 10 and from the rural north of the country, is being treated at a hospital in Dhaka after the gnarled growths began to appear on her chin, nose and ears.

Cases of epidermodysplasia verruciformis, a genetic condition commonly known as 'tree man syndrome', are extremely rare, with only five reported worldwide. So far, all have been in males.

Samanta Lal Sen, the head of the burn and plastic surgery unit at Dhaka's Medical College Hospital, where tests are being carried out to confirm the case, said: "We believe she is the first woman."

Another doctor said she may be suffering from a milder form of the disease and they hope she will make a quicker recovery than those with more advanced cases.

Sahana's father first noticed the growths on his daughter's face about four months ago and brought her to the country's capital to seek treatment when they began to spread.

Mohammad Shahjahan said: "We are very poor. My daughter lost her mother when she was only six. I really hope that the doctors will remove the barks from my beautiful daughter's face."