A Russian MMA fighter dubbed “Popeye” because of his massive biceps has been warned that he might die if he doesn’t get the lumps of petroleum jelly removed soon.
Kirill Tereshin, 25, a former soldier who already had his fake triceps removed, still has his 24-inch guns after the COVID-19 pandemic delayed his additional surgery.
“The risk of complications in this case is very high, but inaction will not help the patient,” Dr. Dmitry Melnikov, a surgeon, told him, according to East2West News. “A toxic substance in the body long term can complicate the kidneys and lead to death.”
The fake muscle man – who has 310,000 followers on Instagram – is seen on video undergoing a CT scan in preparation for surgery in Russia.
“Soon I will have a very complicated, hard third surgery. I don’t know how it’ll end up,” he told the news outlet. “I bulked up my arms when I was 20 due to my own stupidity. I did not think about the consequences.”
Tereshin went under the knife in 2019, but his new girth didn’t matter much in the ring, as he lost to an opponent 20 years his senior — in just three minutes. Shortly thereafter, he started to complain about problems caused by the implants.
Alana Mamaeva, 33, a leading campaigner against cosmetic surgery abuses, persuaded him to save his life by having the poisonous mounds removed.
“I am very lucky that there are doctors who took me on. God forbid something happens to this nerve and I cannot move my arm,” said Tereshin, who is from the city of Pyatigorsk in the region of Stavropol Krai.
“I really worry about this. I am very afraid….I should have thought about this earlier, I know. I blame myself, I know I’m guilty,” he said.
“I’m only 24, and my immune system is so far coping with this inflammation, but I really do not know what will happen next. That is why I started the surgeries to get rid of this nightmare,” he added.
