A young man Furqan bin Imran has overcome a rare disease that causes weak bones and shocked medical practitioners by becoming a bodybuilder and fitness enthusiast.
Furqan suffers from Pycnodysostosis – a rare genetic disorder characterised by distinctive facial features and skeletal malformations. The disease infects one in two million people and only 200 cases have been reported worldwide so far.
Talking to MM News, Furqan bin Imran said there has been no research on this disease yet but it has different stages from mild and very severe. He suffers neither mild nor severe cases of the disease but it causes his bones to become weak and break easily.
“The bones of the sick person become like chalk,” he said. There is a risk of fractures even with simple movements like when you bend too much or sit with loud thud. They are also other disease symptoms but it mostly affects the bones.
Furqan has broken bones eleven times. He had his thigh bones cracked twice in 2012 and 2014. Then one day, Furqan said he saw a video of Arnold Schwarzenegger doing bodybuilding and he decided to follow him.
He eventually took a great risk and started exercising. He was warned by doctors but he did not pay heed to their advice. “I researched on their exercises first, read books and then performed them.”
He continued his rigorous exercises for two years and endured the effects until his efforts finally paid off. “I have full hope that my bones will never break,” he said.
He said that many doctors have called him even from abroad and saying that they are amazed by his ability, while people have called him an inspiration. “Doctors said what I did was possible. I am the first patient in the world to overcome this disease,” he said.
“If I don’t exercise one day, it looks like someone is hitting me with a hammer. I will try my best to guide other patients with this disease as much as possible.”
Furqan said he wants to be a fitness trainer. “No matter what disease you have, the most important asset is your brain. If the mind is not strong then you can overcome every obstacle and get positive results.”
