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Gigantism, Acromegaly and André the Giant

You may have heard of André René Roussimoff (1946-1993), better known by his ring name André the Giant, a French professional wrestler and actor.

André_the_Giant wrestling 80's. Source: wikipedia

André, who was 7 ft 4 in and weighed 520 lbs, became a mainstay of the World Wrestling Federation in the 1980’s, defeating Hulk Hogan to win the WWF championship in 1988. Outside of wrestling, he also became well-known for appearing as Fezzik, the giant in the 1987 film “The Princess Bride.

princess bride promotional photo

As a child, André was always a head taller than other children, and displayed unusually large hands. In fact, he had gigantism, a type of acromegaly.

Gigantism and acromegaly are developmental disorders that can cause bones, cartilage, and organs to increase in size due to an elevated level of growth hormone (GH).

Gigantism and acromegaly are commonly caused by an adenoma (a tumor on the pituitary gland). Normally, the pituitary gland makes Growth Hormone (GH) and secretes it into the bloodstream. GH promotes growth by causing the liver to produce insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), and IGF-1, in turn, causes bones and other body tissues to grow, as well as impacting how the body processes blood glucose and lipids. A tumor on the pituitary gland, however, can cause the manufacture and secretion of GH to increase, resulting in dramatically increased growth for individuals.

The difference between gigantism and acromegaly is defined by the developmental life stage that the elevated GH levels occur during. Adults develop acromegaly, but only children develop gigantism. In children, elevated GH levels will have an impact before the growth plates in bone have fused (which occurs at the end of puberty), which results in persons have very tall statures (gigantism). In adults, the growth plates have fused, and so elevated GH levels do not cause an increase in overall height. However, elevated GH in adults can still impact bone shape and organ size, and is defined as acromegaly

Watch this video to learn about the lives of people living with acromegaly:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wY8iGyf9Au4

Additionally, if you are interested, watch the video below to learn about André the Giant’s life. His acromegaly diagnosis is discussed between 3:50 – 5:00. Despite having a diagnosis, he refused treatment. André died from congestive heart failure likely related to his untreated acromegaly in 1993.

https://youtu.be/ubg8q-dVeFk .

CONNECTIONS TO THE TEXT:

Gigantism is a real condition, although it is not caused by a food supplement but rather by an increase in an endogenous hormone. What health problems do people with gigantism or acromgaly encounter? What other types of experiences, both positive and negative, can people with either of these conditions have?