Human tree: Meet the 7-year-old boy suffering from a rare condition known as 'epidermodysplasia verruciformis'

The body of seven-year-old Ripon Sarker is covered in scaly warts because he suffers from the condition known as 'epidermodysplasia verruciformis'.
Youngster Ripon, from Thakurgaon, Bangladesh, was only admitted to hospital for the first time this month because his family couldn't afford treatment.

The young boy was admitted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital on August 20.
His dad Mahendra Das said: "They haven't carried out tests on him. Physicians say they will look into this matter before treatment."

Poor Ripon cannot walk or eat by himself because of his tree-like features – but doctors have said they are hopeful that his hands and feet are operable as his fingers and toes and can still be identified.
Ripon's symptoms match the ones of 26-year-old Abul Bajander – dubbed ' tree man ' – who also has the same condition and was recently operated at the Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

Burn and plastic surgery unit coordinator Samanta Lal Sen said: "We are hopeful about the child's situation.
"In Abul's case, we couldn't distinguish the warts from his fingers.
"Ripon's warts have not expanded to that extent yet. He can identify his fingers and toes.
"We might be able to treat him with fewer operations."

The physician went on to explain that the child's family is extremely poor.
He said: "That's why he lacks proper nutrition. His physical development has been hampered as well. We need to give him proper nutrition before the operations begin.

"He might require blood as well."
Abul, 26, went under the knife in March to treat the extremely rare growths.

During the procedure, doctors operated on his right hand to eliminate some of the smaller warts.
The medics estimated the growths removed weighed at least 11 pounds.
They also suggested Abul would need at least 15 further operations in the course of one year.
Samanta Lal Sen, faculty director at the hospital, said: "We removed some small warts from his palm but Bajandar would need up to 15 operations in total to rid his body of the growths in one year."