2024 is almost over, and that can only mean one thing: another deep dive into the weirdest medical cases that have left everyone awestruck, shivering, and groaning in amazement this year.

Case studies are an important part of medicine, because they can sometimes be the first indication of a new discovery. But it is also an eternal reminder that the human body can be strange or have strange things happen to it in all ways. Here are some of the bizzaro medical highlights published in scientific journals or otherwise making the news in 2024.

The most vaccinated person in the world

In March, scientists in Germany PUBLISHED a study showing a person who claimed to have received more than 200 covid-19 vaccines over a two-year period. German authorities alleged that the man initially continued to vaccinate in order to obtain vaccination cards that could be sold to others, although they ultimately declined to pursue fraud charges. By the time the researchers contacted him, however, he probably wanted to get his shots—he even chose to receive two more vaccinations himself during the study.

The researchers found no sign that the man was damaged in any way by his multiple vaccinations, and even found some evidence that his immune system was better protected against the coronavirus than usual. Perhaps the most compelling bit of evidence is that the man has no reported history of covid-19 infection — a rarity in today’s world. However, as the researchers point out: You don’t need 200-plus shots to get the most out of your covid-19 vaccination. Few will do.

Losing your guts

Two separate cases of people literally having their guts ripped open made waves this year.

on a case, published this May, a 63-year-old man was sneezing and coughing into his bowels through a new surgical site involving his abdomen. The man’s breakfast and shirt were destroyed, but paramedics took him safely to the hospital and he recovered without incident. the another case originally published in September 2022 but only made available online in January 2024. It involves a 52-year-old woman whose covid-induced cough caused her gut to leak from an old hernia repair surgery site. He was hospitalized, but also successfully recovered his guts.

Abdominal surgeries are known to be a risk factor for disbowelment, but this remains rare. However, I probably panic a little for the near future every time I feel a sneeze coming on.

A hairy condition

In case you’re wondering, hairballs aren’t just a problem for cats.

In July, the surgeons came from Ecuador reported pulled a two-pound hairball from a young woman’s stomach. Doctors in Massachusetts report treating themselves hairball case this past November, involving a 16-year-old girl who experienced weeks of worsening abdominal pain and other abdominal symptoms.

These cases are examples of Rapunzel syndrome, a rare medical condition in which a mass of ingrown hair can be large enough to obstruct the stomach and possibly the small intestine. Rapunzel syndrome can be life-threatening, even if both cases are caught in time before that happens. This is usually due to the psychological compulsion to pull and eat one’s own hair.

The three

In October, doctors in the UK reported a medical marvel that doubles as a good bar story: a man with not one, not two, but three penises. Perhaps the most surprising detail about this case is that the man himself probably did not know about his unusual anatomy. The male’s extra genitalia are inside his body, and his external genitalia appear and function normally. Scientists only discovered his condition after his body was donated to science for autopsy research. This is the second recorded case of a man with three penises—a condition coined triphallia—and the first found in an adult male.

The furry menace

As a cat dad myself, I can attest to the many benefits of owning a cat. But sometimes, these cats can cause medical diseases.

Last May, for example, doctors in Portugal detailed how a girl developed a rare bone infection from a young kitten taken in by her family. Earlier this February, Oregon health officials reported that a woman in her 50s developed a rare case of plague that was likely acquired from her recently infected cat. In both cases, the patients appeared to have fully recovered, although the Oregon woman’s cat died from the infection.

Although these cases are stranger than most, they are an important reminder that cats are still animals and can be potential carriers of infectious diseases. If you get bitten and scratched by a cat, you must always Wash the wound immediately with soap and water for five minutes (do not rub), clean it with an antiseptic, and seek medical attention if you see signs of infection. In the case of plague and other germs, cats and the fleas they carry can potentially spread them, so flea control is also important.

Brainworm migraine

This is the most likely human story in Florida: In March, state doctors reported to a man whose months of severe and constant headaches were caused by a parasitic brain invader: the pork tapeworm (Tape soles).

The condition is formally known as neurocysticercosis, and it is caused by tapeworm cysts. These cysts do not develop into full-grown adults but migrate to different parts of the body, including the brain. Their presence in the brain can sometimes trigger a harmful immune response that causes many neurological symptoms, such as seizures and migraines. In this particular case, the man may have gotten a typical tapeworm infection from eating undercooked bacon, but then reinfected himself with the cysts from not washing his hands properly after going to the bathroom. The man was treated with steroids and antiparasitic medication, which helped reduce his symptoms. The others known brainworm survivors also progressing.

Toilet problem

Some stories start out bad and somehow get worse. In January, Canadian doctors CEBU a 70-year-old man was bitten by a rat that got into his toilet bowl. The man subsequently contracted a life-threatening infection from the bite that sent him to the intensive care unit. The rat gave the human the bacterial disease leptospirosis, which makes the case even stranger, because these bacteria are usually found in rat urine, and not in saliva. As far as the doctors can tell, the rat may have contaminated its own urine-soaked mouth with bacteria before biting the human—a real insult to injury scenario if I’ve ever heard one. Fortunately, the man was successfully treated with antibiotics, but who knows if he will be able to use the toilet again without fear.

Burning Margarita

Here’s a reason to limit your daily intake. In December, the doctors detailed a strange case of phytophotodermatitis—aka “lime disease,” aka “margarita burn.” The man developed nasty rashes and blisters on his hands one day after he manually juiced limes and spent the day outside watching soccer. Phytophotodermatitis is caused by exposure to a class of chemicals commonly found in plants and fruits known as furanocoumarins, followed by exposure to ultraviolet A radiation. Furocoumarins are absorbed by the skin and sensitize it to UVA light, causing an inflammatory reaction that destroys skin cells.

Unfortunately, there is no current treatment that can speed recovery from lime disease (not to be confused with Lyme disease)—victims have to wait days or even weeks for the condition to go away on its own. The man was given a topical steroid cream and moisturizer to reduce his symptoms, and his hands eventually returned to normal.

The wall of wonder

Honestly, I would love to describe in detail all the amazing medical cases that happened this year, but we all have families to fall back on. So here is a short ode to some of the noble mentions.

There is the person who saw the world of pink after orgasms; the woman who blind (temporary, thank you) from using hair dye; THE discovery an autoimmune disorder that prevents vitamin B from reaching your brain; the two men who caught a deadly fungal infection from bat guano that they use or plan to use as fertilizer for their homegrown cannabis; the woman who caught parasitic pneumonia from eating deer meat; and the family reunion where people were caught parasitic worms from tainted bear meat (maybe people should stay away from game meat in general?).

The great eel escape

Few cases trouble us at Gizmodo like this one next time.

In July, doctors in Vietnam reported pulling a two-foot (61-centimeter) eel out of a man’s gut after he inserted it into his butt—even after the eel proceeded to chew through his gut.

The man visited an emergency room with severe abdominal pain. Once there, he told the doctors that he was ready to push an eel up his anus, although he refused to give an exact reason why (as is always true in these cases, however, it likely to be sex-related). He made his situation worse by sticking a lemon there too, supposedly to keep the eel where it was. However, the dirty passenger was not cooperative. When the doctors operated on the man, the eel had reached his stomach cavity by biting the intestines. The man survived his ill-advised experiment, even without losing part of his colon.

Amazingly, this is actually the second case of butt eels Reported from doctors in Vietnam this year, although another case involved a shorter eel, measuring 12 inches (30.5 cm).

Here’s hoping nothing in 2025 comes close to the baffling awesomeness of these two incidents. Eh, who am I laughing at: the weirder, the better.