A Chinese baby is suffering an incredibly rare disorder that makes his skin peel off like fish scales.
Song Dehui has been seeking help for his son's severe lamellar ichthyosis, an autosomal recessive disorder that strikes one in 600,000 people and lasts for life.
The boy's skin has no pores, meaning inner heat and sweat cannot be expelled.
"In the summer he has to lie on ice cubes to lower the body temperature, otherwise he'll have a high fever all the time," Song said.
The child's hands and feet are covered in skin described as being like tree bark, while his ears and lips are severely cracked.
The boy has no body hair and also lacks teeth and eyebrows.
Song has taken his boy to dozens of hospitals but none can cure the disease.
"Now we can only pin our hope on folk medicine or magic to happen," he said.
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