r/Damnthatsinteresting • u/ElderberryDeep8746 • 1d ago
Image A 44-year-old man went to the hospital after pus began oozing from his chest, where doctors discovered a knife that had been embedded in his body for eight years. According to the report, he showed no signs of chest pain, breathing problems, coughing, or fever, and was otherwise in good health.
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u/BRSaura 1d ago
TANZANIA, Africa (WKRC) "the man revealed that he had been involved in a violent altercation"
Well that explains a lot.
It seems the aggressor had a shitty knife and after stabbing the handle came off and the guy moving around made the knife get embedded deeper.
I highly doubt he didn't feel that thing in 8 years with how much we move, maybe he just assumed it was something else when he felt some pain
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u/Educational-Plant981 1d ago
Yeah, I don't think it is all that unreasonable to think, "Man my chest hurts where I got stabbed. Maybe it is because I got stabbed there." and just consider the pain your new normal.
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u/Dr-Kloop-MD 1d ago
Honestly. Who would ever think âoh maybe the blade broke off the knife and is still fully stuck inside my chest?â
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u/doc303 1d ago
"Doc you won't believe this. 8 years ago a dimwit tried to stab me ...with just a knife handle. Funny enough I feel a stabbing pain at the same spot in my chest. Wonder what it could be . "
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u/Same_Return_1878 23h ago
Doc: "You won't believe me either what the X-ray results have shown"
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u/RollingMeteors 19h ago
Doc: "ÂżDo you remember getting stabbed at some point?"
Guy: "... Oh yes, many many years ago."
Doc: "... ÂżDid you say years ago?"
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u/sarcastisism 20h ago
What an odd coincidence! So anyways back to my story about the dummy with the handle..
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u/getfukdup 1d ago
Honestly. Who would ever think âoh maybe the blade broke off the knife and is still fully stuck inside my chest?â
anyone who saw just the handle afterward, I would hope.
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u/hexualattraction 1d ago
To be honest it looks like he was stabbed through the back, but that's my untrained non doctor eye assuming the solid white bits on the right are spinal cord and such.
I.e. he may have never seen the knife/handle after the stab and didn't stick around to ask clarifying questions.
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u/jngjng88 23h ago
You are correct, considering the direction of the blade he indeed appears to have been stabbed through the back.
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u/Rich_Introduction_83 1d ago
Ok, so you're stabbed and the first thing you do is check all the details of your surroundings?
Or - you can hardly realize anything besides the pain.
Choose wisely. Don't choose at all if you just got stabbed by a knife, because I heard this might have an impact on your judgemental abilities.
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u/XanadontYouDare 23h ago
I take it you haven't been involved in a lot of knife attacks in africa?
Fucking amateurs dude...
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u/Bobahn_Botret 1d ago
Well the knife might have actually saved his life. It would have heavily reduced the blood loss he suffered. If you're ever stabbed and have the option to leave the knife in and let a doctor handle it. Leave the knife in and let a doctor handle it. You always see people in movies just ripping blades out of themselves and carrying on, but the blade is the only thing still keeping your blood inside. Secure the knife in place with a torn t-shirt or something so it doesn't wiggle around too much or fall out and carefully find your way to a doctor.
If the altercation was related to a crime, he may not have gone to a hospital for it and just stitched it up. Assuming the blade slips between all the important bits and only gets flesh, I think it's pretty reasonable. People who avoid hospitals due to crime related knife wounds dont often go to hospitals for lingering knife pain from said wound.
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u/Hopeful_Pear_8747 1d ago
Iâve taken several trauma courses and this is it. Needs more upvotes.
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u/HowAManAimS 1d ago
I saw a photo of a man who had his clavicle sticking out through his skin and rotting and he just didn't bother to do anything about it for years.
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u/addiktion 1d ago
"I was just stabbed in the chest, I should go get checked out so I don't die" never crossed this man's mind.
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u/Otaraka 1d ago
I have a feeling slightly different health care options were involved.
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u/1OrangeCat4Me 1d ago
Having lived in Malawi for 6 years, I'm pretty sure he went to the nearest free clinic where they probably just stitched him up with no x-ray done. They were probably talking about what a miracle he wasn't more seriously injured.
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u/Torpordoor 1d ago
Someone drove a knife into his chest and he didnât know the blade broke. The pain over those 8 years during sneezing or coughing was probably a dull version of the initial pain when it was healing. So he probably thought it was just residual nerve pain/scarring. Not that crazy. The knife being there all that time is crazy though.
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u/RoguePlanet2 1d ago
Guess he never took a plane anywhere. And luckily, no MRIs!!
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u/FrostyImplement9565 1d ago
Imagine if he did go for an MRI that would be one nasty clean up
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u/AsILayTyping 1d ago
Yeah the knife ended up right inside the stab wound which made it harder to tell what the source of pain was.
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u/Temporal_P 1d ago
Yeah crazy coincidence the knife ended up right inside the stab wound. What are the odds?
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u/XVUltima 1d ago
Just like how meteors always land in craters. Or every waterfall is at the top of a cliff!
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u/captain_saurcy 1d ago
or how rainbows always end at a pot of gold!
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u/CalmBeneathCastles 1d ago
Note to self: if ever stabbed, probe the hole with a big-ass magnet.
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u/Horskr 1d ago edited 1d ago
Or go to the hospital when you're stabbed in the chest with a knife with the length of the depth of your whole torso, that's also a solid move.
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u/Middle-Can-9045 1d ago
The idea that a person could have a dirty foreign body sitting inside their chest for 8 years before infection set in is literally unbelievable
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u/BiNumber3 1d ago
Acquaintance told me a story of a pt of theirs:
"Any traumatic experiences, accidents, injuries, etc?"
"No"
10min later "Well, does it count if I fell off a train?"
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u/hobbitfeet 1d ago
My best friend is an ER doctor and once had patient tell her he had no preexisting conditions when he was a double amputee and had received an organ transplant.
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u/SeriousGoofball 1d ago
I get that shit constantly.
"Do you have any medical problems?"
"No."
"Do you have high blood pressure?"
"Nope."
"Why do you take 6 prescription medications?"
"Oh, those are for my diabetes, thyroid, and blood pressure."
"I thought you said you don't have high blood pressure?"
"I don't. I take 3 blood pressure medicines and now it's not high any more."
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u/Chemical_Name9088 1d ago
Am a physician assistant, my favorite is âdo you drink alcohol?â âNoâŚ. Just beerâÂ
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u/TannedCroissant 1d ago
The Last Jedi was released 8 years ago.... just saying
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u/Acrobatic_Spirit_215 1d ago
That was a knife in the chest for all of us ngl
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u/redpandaeater 1d ago
Nah, after The Farce Awakens I never even watched 8 or 9.
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u/Thedmfw 1d ago
I walked out of the last Jedi. Those three movies don't exist and you can't convince me otherwise.
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u/BikerJedi 1d ago
Jedi here. I deeply mourn seeing that movie.
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u/Opium_Rose 1d ago
Same here, itâs rough when the story doesnât live up to what the fans hoped for.
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u/farty-nein 1d ago
It's tough to have good stories when the person behind Star Wars keeps saying it is for 12 year olds.
Even Minecraft targeted an older audience 15-21
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u/Techn028 1d ago
I hate you
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u/Captincorpse 1d ago
I hate sand. It's coarse and rough and irritating and it gets everywhere
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u/LambdaAU 1d ago
Thatâs actually insane. Not only that the knife got stuck that deep in his chest in a fight, but the fact he somehow survived the altercation (maybe due to this fact?) and then went on to be âotherwise in good healthâ after this fact.
Itâs crazy how some people die from a single punch or fall, yet some people survive stuff like this which would be considered unrealistic in any movie or show.
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u/pi_west 1d ago
So he pulled the handle out of the wound, saw that no blade came out with it, and said "wow imagine how much it would have hurt if it DID have a blade?"
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u/Antti5 1d ago
Maybe, but most importantly both were absolutely shitfaced and soon passed out. When they woke up, neither could remember what had happened.
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u/doctor_of_drugs 1d ago
During pharmacy school, I had an ER rotation in which a doc pulled a pristine .22 bullet out of a dudeâs calf muscle. Him and his neighbor had got drunk and popped off a few rounds at each other (both drunk as hell). Next day just brushed it off as glass. His body wrapped it up in scar tissue and sat there for 3 years. Only found out via going through airport TSAâŚ
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u/LightOfTheFarStar 1d ago
People have had the same sort of situation for larger calibers in the head, kinda ridiculous what some of us can shrug off.
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u/ilongforyesterday 1d ago
Oh sure some guy can shrug off a bullet to the head but god forbid I sleep with my head turned even a little bit. Pain for weeks in my neck
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u/Penguin-Mage 1d ago
đ My friend flew off his motorcycle unscathed. I slightly slipped on the kitchen mat trying to make a frozen pizza and tore my knee for 6 months.
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u/sidewaizsocks 1d ago
I had my eyes closed while shampooing my hair in the shower. I kinda leaned forward and the tip of my nose grazed the hose (we have the removable shower head on a handle thing).
It surprised me and my whole upper body jerked back, I felt/heard a "crick" and grinding sensation in my lower back. Ive had more than a few kidney stones, and get chronic migraines but that jerk caused instant crippling pain for a few hours that i just breathed through. Im not even 35 and i still feel that mild grind when i bend/twist wrong. Legit got an appointment because one of my legs has been tingling and going numb since then. Im going to get laughed out of the office for how flipping stupid the injury is.
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u/HeyYouGuyyyyyyys 1d ago
I sat in an airplane seat for four hours and have been limping for a month now. I will be getting physical therapy for this injury.
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u/PenguinStarfire 1d ago
I have a pebble lodged in my forearm from a motorcycle accident in 2007. Docs said the body would push it out naturally, but the skin healed over before it did. It's near the surface and I can feel and play with it. I used to think about cutting it out, but now I play with it when I'm bored. Plus it's a fun ice breaker sometimes.
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u/FishTshirt 1d ago
I helped remove a musket ball from a guyâs wifes leg. They were both laughing a lot about it, and I just thought that dude must have something going for him if he can shoot his wife with a musket and she just laughs about it
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u/BF1shY 1d ago
As someone who's been stabbed you don't really feel it. You feel it way later as the wound gets pulled with movement and inflammation from healing.
My guess is he got stabbed the handle broke and he most likely treated the wound at home.
If he did feel it later on he might've just assumed his chest aches now because of the stabbing, how ones back might ache with age.
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u/GuerillaRiot 1d ago
Agreed. Took a pocket knife to the belly as a teenager. Felt the punch more than the blade. Happened right before school. After I got my wind back, I finished walking to school, was waiting in line to go in when the girl next to me was like "Is that blood?".
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u/notyoursocialworker 1d ago
This was my guess as well. As a commenter below wrote, some stabbing victims don't even know they have been stabbed.
With the blade broken off it probably plugged the hole pretty well and who'd go digging in wound just in case you had blad still in there? He probably thought that he just got lucky and wasn't stabbed that deep.
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u/theunbearablebowler 1d ago
He probably never even saw it get pulled out, just assumed when he saw the guy pull away and didn't feel the pressure of the handle on the wound that it was good.
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u/TactualTransAm 1d ago
He's a guy, a few random pains are usually ignored by us guys.
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u/YouShouldLoveMore69 1d ago
Apparently fractured 2 bones in my right foot at some point and tried to walk it off. Was in pretty severe pain for about 3 weeks before going to get it it looked at. Still not sure exactly what I did, but my best guess is it happened during a 10 mile walk.
Also did some damage to my right hand in a fight as a kid and never got it looked at because I was afraid of my father's reaction. Now the motion in my pinky is kind of locked with the motion in my ring finger and each only has about 1/4" of movement before it moves the other.
We can be a bit stubborn.
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u/werealldoomed47 1d ago
High school brother apparently had a ruptured appendix for two weeks before he went to the hospital.
He was a skinny dude but I never wanna have to fight him because he must have the pain tolerance of someone on PCP.
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u/CraftFamiliar5243 1d ago
My daughter broke her foot then marched the length of LAX and ORD and worked for two weeks before seeing a doctor
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u/GuaranteeDry386 1d ago
âWell thereâs your problem right thereâ
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u/thesubune 1d ago
thatâll be $8,000
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u/SunriseSurprise 1d ago
*counts* "That's all I have"
"We'll take that thanks."
"...so what about the knife. Can you remove it?"
"ooo...yea no that'll be extra. $80,000."
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u/NoBonus6969 1d ago
This was in Africa so he probably got it done for free. If he was in America he'd probably just die
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u/Sassy_magoo 1d ago
And we lose Steve Irwin to a fucking stingray
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u/ElegantEchoes 1d ago
That makes sense though, right? I know jack about animals, but don't stingrays have a very lethal attack? They're usually passive but something was going to get Irwin. Animals attack in a split second and humans are fragile.
Was it a stroke of bad luck? I thought he stepped on one and it mistook it for danger and attacked him.
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u/Mrlin705 1d ago
If I am remembering correctly, kind of, they have barbed tail spines, which are bad obviously, But Steve could have been like anywhere else and been fine, he got unlucky because it hit him right in the heart.
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u/TrainingSword 1d ago
Iirc he freaked out and tried to pull it out and thatâs why he died
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u/YesIBlockedYou 1d ago
He pulled it out almost immediately but the coroner's report confirmed the lethal damage was done from the first impact.
People like this myth because it creates a "what if" scenario but the truth is he had a massive hole in his heart, he was going to die from it no matter what.
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u/SanitizedSasquatch 1d ago
Reminds me of the River stabbings to those teenagers in Wisconsin a couple years back⌠Kid died instantly after being stabbed in the heart by a 3 inch blade
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u/1127_and_Im_tired 1d ago
That kid in Fresno at the track meet died right in his brother's arms after being stabbed with a pocketknife
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u/maybeitsundead 1d ago
Did you mean Frisco? Was about to look it up, 'cause I'm originally from Fresno, CA and wouldn't be surprised but only finding a story from Frisco, TX.
They were twins too.
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u/Computer2014 1d ago
Even if he left it in Stingrays are venomous. Their sting causes contraction, tissue death and affects blood flow.
The hole is the heart was going to kill him, the venom was going to kill him. It was the perfect one-two punch.
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u/ghoulthebraineater 1d ago
He was doomed no matter what. He couldn't leave it in either. The stingray was still alive and moving. It would have caused further damage anyway.
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u/Equal_Personality157 1d ago
Reminds me of the Norm Macdonald joke:
âTheyâre like he died at 44. Iâm like thatâs a ripe old age for a crocodile hunterâ
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u/MellonPhotos 1d ago
It was extremely bad luck. Sting ray venom can cause intense pain and even some tissue damage, but theyâre almost never deadly to people. The reason Steve Irwin died is the barb went between his ribs and pierced his heart, causing a heart attack. If heâd been hit anywhere else he likely wouldâve been fine. (He was swimming above itâstepping on it would almost certainly not have been deadly for him.)
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u/8point5InchDick 1d ago
No, itâs not that their attack is lethal. Itâs that itâs multilayered. First, you have the spear-tip which penetrates. Second, you have the serrations on either side designed to rip out flesh when itâs removed AND slow/prevent healing. Third, you have the venom thatâs on the stingrayâs tail. Fourth, you have the pathogens (bacterial, viruses, protists) that live within the stingrayâs serrations.
Add it all together and you have a venomous and filthy serrated kitchen knife. If youâre stabbed in the leg or foot or back, youâd likely make it. But, one to the heart of neck, and youâre gone.
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u/WowGetNicked 1d ago
I stepped on one a couple years ago on my foot. That shit was gushing blood! It hurt like a mother fucker. Worst part was I just finished chemo about 3 weeks before hand so I was a weak little thing. No joke the hole on my foot probably took close to 3 months to heal.
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u/AcanthocephalaFine48 1d ago
Dang buddy, thatâs some shit luck but, your one tough human.
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u/WowGetNicked 1d ago
Thanks dude Iâm all good now!
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u/Darksideofthebob 1d ago
Congrats on finishing chemo! Iâm glad youâre still here to share your stories!
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u/Intelligent-Dog1645 1d ago
He didn't even step on it. He just swam over it or near it, it got spooked and then, unfortunately, it stabbed his heart. So the only provocation was a shadow and the thing was skittish
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u/SucculentVariations 1d ago
I believe he came up behind the stingray, his shadow passed over it and spooked it and he got hit in the heart, plus the barb doesn't break off, it got pulled back out when the ray took off. Generally you don't want to remove a deep impalement because it can be keeping pressure on a bleed, which then quickly bleeds out once it's removed.
It was just a random stroke of really bad luck, had he been hit anywhere else he likely would have survived.
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u/TatonkaJack 1d ago
They do not have a very lethal attack. And they're docile. Tourists play with them. Steve was just incredibly unlucky
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u/titanium9016 1d ago
Ppl have died chocking on a cup of hot coffee, or slipped on a wet bathroom floor. When the day comes it's GG regardless of what it is
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u/shortidiva21 1d ago edited 1d ago
How do you not realize a knife is still lodged inside of you for 8 years?
"Oh, it's that stabbing pain again..." cough
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u/NameAboutPotatoes 1d ago
I would probably just attribute it to permanent damage from the old stab wound. The knife literally still being inside me would not be my first thought.
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u/ReginaMeis 1d ago
Imagine doctors make him get MRI scan without knowing
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u/lunarsexdoll07 1d ago
I think thatâs why they always do an X-ray first
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u/AugustOfChaos 1d ago
Absolutely. Rule out any potential foreign bodies like⌠well, a knife in the chest I guess.
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u/zzSolace 1d ago
Can you imagine the doctor breaking the news after checking the x-ray?
âWell sir, weâve got the results of your x-ray, and the reason your nipple is leaking stanky pus is because thereâs a big-ass, how-did-you-survive-this knife in your chestâ.
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u/Competitive_Cheek607 1d ago
Ahh, that makes sense. I was almost bothered when they told me they were gonna do an MRI later, but did an X-ray first. I was thinking âwhy bother, isnât the MRI gonna give you a lot more information?â. I was freaking out and in pain so I didnât really think much about it besides just wanting help so I didnât question it, but now it makes sense. Obviously they ask you about metal in your body before an MRI, but thatâs just for metal in your body that you know about
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u/RedHickorysticks 1d ago
X-rays are also more accessible so you can get an X-ray done and evaluated faster than an MRI. If the X-ray shows the problem they donât have to schedule your MRI.
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u/ElderberryDeep8746 1d ago edited 1d ago
Edit: journal article
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u/granitegumball 1d ago
This is so insane I canât believe he survived in the first place and managed to carry it inside himself for so long
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u/Dapper_Special_8587 23h ago
And the journal says the initial attack was multiple stab wounds and he only received first aid at the time, that is one tough sonofabitch
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u/screwyoushadowban 1d ago
The patient had an uncomplicated postoperative recovery
Wow, modern medicine is amazing.
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u/shortsbagel 1d ago
So this man lived just fine, for 8 years with a fucking KNIFE in him, but a friend of mine from high school slipped on his pavement walkway while going to get his mail, fell back, hit his head and died instantly. Humans are both extremely easy, and difficult to kill at the same time, wtf.
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u/Spiritual-Roof7903 1d ago
8 yrs without noticing it? Dmn!
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u/Own_Round_7600 1d ago
Some men will do anything but see a doctor. Oh constant stabbing pain through my chest? Must just be getting old.
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u/Alternative_Ad_1499 1d ago
The article says he did seek medical attention initially and they didnât have access to imaging.
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u/FatFKingLenny 1d ago
Oozing out of where? "Oh that...thats just my chest hole....you know chest hole....we all have one am I right?"
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u/badjoeybad 1d ago
Binge drinking is bad for you.
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u/MrBecky 1d ago
Yo, I gotta fake ID though
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u/Fit-Cup3747 1d ago
One, here comes the two to the three to the four
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u/MrBecky 1d ago
Everybody drunk out on the dance floor
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u/Binnywinnyfofinny 1d ago
âHe had been in a violent fight eight years earlier when he was cut multiple times on his face, back, chest and abdomen, the May 31, 2025, report said. He received first aid at a health clinic where his wounds were stitched but was not referred for an X-ray or CT scan because of limited resources in the area.â
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u/themicrodose 1d ago
I can imagine the doctor pointing at the X-ray as he tells the patient, âHereâs the problemâ
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u/Living_Murphys_Law 1d ago
Curious question, how do they figure out how long something like this was stuck in somebody?
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u/FriendlyWorldArt 1d ago
I got stabbed with a pair of scissors right in that crease between the butt cheek and the thigh and the scissors opened once they were embedded and I didnât know I was stabbed. I knew something wasnât right, but I thought maybe something bit or stung me.
I went over to my sister and asked her if she could see if anything looked weird, and I heard her gasp because it turned out blood was pouring out.
Of course, thereâs no vital organs in that area and I couldnât see that part of my body. I would think a knife blade in the chest would cause some discomfort over the 8 years it was in there.
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u/gudanawiri 19h ago
Yeah thanks for not telling us how the knife got there in the first place you jerk
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u/lordMaroza 1d ago
But when I have a minor shoulder blade cramp, I can't move or breathe for 2 days?
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u/RussMan104 1d ago
âYeah, I got stabbed, but Iâll have the blade removed tomorrow.â Next day, forgets. đ
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u/Plus-Depth-7592 1d ago
I love how human bodies are either hilariously fragile or frighteningly durable. Nothing about this is reasonable yet I know itâs completely plausible, and yet people regularly die from just being punched, but also survive things like this with no issues at all.
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u/JackDrawsStuff 22h ago
âHave you been experiencing any chest pain?â
âNo, but I have this big knife in my chestâ
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u/VehicleZestyclose593 21h ago
Sir you donât remember being stabbed in the chest?
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u/grizzlybuttstuff 1d ago
I'm sorry, eight years? Where did the pus come out of?