A man was forced to undergo radical surgery to have a live fish removed from his intestine.
Graphic footage shows the man from Londrina, Brazil, having an operation to remove a South American lungfish from his body.
In the horrific clip, a surgeon pulls out the eel-like fish, known to grow up to a length of 125 cm (4.10 ft), which had apparently burrowed into the man’s body.
It can be seen being taken from his abdomen and wrapped in a cloth.
Miraculously, the fish was still very much alive when it was removed – and can be seen wriggling around.
One report suggests it was 2ft long, although this has not been verified.
The creature later had to be euthanised, according to the Brazilian news website esmeraldanoticias.com.
The unidentified man, who has recovered from the operation, has since made a formal complaint after staff at Hospital Universitário (University Hospital) in Londrina filmed the surgery.
The video of him and the fish, known locally as a piramboia, has become a viral sensation after it was posted on the website LiveLeak.
During the operation, doctors can be heard laughing as the wriggling fish is surgically removed and one is heard to say: ‘This one is for the history’, while another adds: ‘I have just sent the pic by mail.’
Women can be heard laughing and cheering.
The surgeon and staff should be reprimanded – maybe even dismissed. When you are at your most helpless point, lying on a surgeon’s table, you have an expectation of privacy and that your nightmare and the contents of your body won’t wind up on the Internet. As an added prop, with your surgeon and nurses laughing and snapping selfies – that’s about as unprofessional as it gets. I don’t blame this man in the least for filing a complaint.