A father of three can sleep comfortably on his back for the first time in 15 years after having a massive tumor – weighing 11lb (5kg) – removed by surgical charity Mercy Ships.

Malagasy builder and rice farmer Fidisoa was 38 when what appeared to be a tiny pimple on his back started to grow, first into a lump and then into the size of a fist. It continued to grow until Fidisoa looked as if he carried a backpack underneath his shirt.

By age 53, Fidisoa struggled to do the high level of manual labor required from his livelihood and laying down on his back was painful for him.

Despite his best efforts to have the tumor removed using his life savings to pay for three surgeries at hospitals in his home country in 2015, 2018 and 2021, each time the tumor just regrew.

He said: “The first surgery was 600,000 Ariary (about $135 USD) since the tumor was comparatively smaller then. The second surgery was 1,300,000 Ariary ($290 USD) and the third surgery was 5,000,000 Ariary ($1,250 USD).”

“The first and second surgeries were paid for, using all the money I had worked and saved over the years.” Then, in order to pay for his third surgery in 2021, Fidisoa took on a new contract abroad to raise the final funds he needed – all of which was spent on the treatment.

A family man with three children aged five, 22 and 25, Fidisoa felt driven to continue working hard in the fields and providing for his loved ones despite the fact he was in physical pain and struggled to remain active.

Hope finally came in the form of a news announcement explaining that international charity Mercy Ships was offering free surgeries for conditions such as his on hospital ship, the Africa Mercy.

“I heard of Mercy Ships in 2015 on the news, but at the time, I didn’t know how to get selected,” he admitted. When Mercy Ships returned to Madagascar in 2024, Fidisoa was able to be seen by the volunteer medical team and was welcomed on board the Africa Mercy® to receive his long-awaited surgery.

The day Fidisoa finally boarded the hospital ship was unforgettable – for more reasons than one. “Today, June 6, is my 53^rd birthday and to be going in for free surgery tomorrow is like the best birthday gift I have ever received. The nurses here are so kind and even sang a happy birthday song for me,” Fidisoa shared.

After the four-hour surgery, Fidisoa’s family, including his wife, daughter, and sister, were all waiting for him outside the operating room and were elated to see the tumor had gone.

“They were amazed at how different I looked,” Fidisoa said with a smile. “Thank you to all the loving, humble people at Mercy Ships and to everyone who made this possible.”

Dr. Tertius Venter, a volunteer reconstructive plastics surgeon from South Africa, was among the team who operated on Fidisoa in a procedure called a back hibernoma excision. He said that the benign tumor, a soft lobular fibroma which weighed 5 kilograms (11 lbs.), was now gone for good. After past surgeries regrowth occurred because not all abnormal tissue was removed.

“In his case, we spent quite a lot of time because it [abnormal tissue] also infiltrated into his muscles, so we had to go thoroughly and find every bit and remove it as far we could. We have removed it completely now,” explained Dr. Venter.

Finally free from the weight he had long carried, Fidisoa would now be able to live a normal life.

After his healing journey was complete, Fidisoa was filled with fresh ideas for the future. Without the physical limitations of his tumor, the work that had long been challenging now felt like a new beginning.

“I look forward to getting back to work immediately on the farm where I grow rice. I intend to fix an old motorbike I have back home and use that to supply sacks of rice to my customers. Maybe with time, I will travel to the Comoros Islands to do construction work, but for now, I’ll stay in Madagascar,” he said with optimism.