Gigantism: “Some days, I feel like I belong nowhere on this planet. Everything is too short, too small, not comfortable, not made for me. Igor Vovkovinskiy explains some of the many difficulties he faces every day living with gigantism. Gigantism is a genetic disorder that causes abnormally large growth due to excess growth hormone in childhood, before the bone growth plates close. People with gigantism are born like any other child. During the early years, the disorder is often confused with simple growth spurts. Another common name for this disorder is pituitary gigantism, leading these people to be known as pituitary giants. (Karlinsky, N., & Harper, E., March 11, 2010: ICD-11 Beta Draft (Foundation), n.d.). History: Throughout history, stories have been told of big, bad giants disrupting the peace. The theory now is that these “giants” were actually just patients diagnosed with gigantism. Johannes Wier was the first to attempt a medical diagnosis of gigantism in 1567. The first true case, however, was diagnosed in 1886 by Pierre Marie after finding features of the genetic disorder in two of his patients. He called it Acromelgalia. Finally in 1909 Harvey Cushing discovered the correlation between giant patients and growth hormone. It was then that they discovered that these stories of giants were false accusations. In reality they were just people with an irregularity in growth hormones, nowadays a disorder called gigantism. (Gigantism, n.d.) Mode of Inheritance: Gigantism is usually caused by a tumor located on the pituitary gland. The tumor is what triggers the increased production of human growth hormone, which is what leads to the increase in size of people. Growth hormone overdose is also… middle of paper… the reason this treatment is only used when other forms of treatment fail or are unavailable. (Gigantism,ndGigantismTreatments.nd) Outlook on the disorder: According to St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center, approximately 80% of cases of gigantism are treated with surgery. If for some reason the tumor recurs, it would be considered dangerous to go under the knife again, medications are often used to allow the pituitary giant to live a long and fulfilling life. Yes, these people living with gigantism face difficulties every day, however society must remember that these people are not the monsters of our childhood fairy tales. They are just normal people suffering from a genetic disease. Research and treatments improve every day, which gives many of these pituitary giants hope that they can lead long, healthy, happy lives. (Gigantism, n.d.)