Extreme X-ray: Woman nicknamed 'the human kebab' after surviving impalement

Chinese media dubbed a woman 'the human kebab' after she was pierced by a steel rod through the entire length of her body.

Wu Xingxian, 42, was working at a construction site in Duchang county, in southern China, when the wooden plank she was standing on broke.

She fell 20 feet on to a steel rod below that penetrated through her left thigh, went through her stomach and chest, and exited at her neck.

'I didn’t know a steel rod had gone into my body. I just felt there was something on my neck and I tried to touch it. When people told me a steel rod had gone right through me, I didn’t dare move any more and I felt quite scared. I thought I was going to die,' Wu said.

Wu was rushed to the No. 1 People’s Hospital in Jiujiang, but had fallen into a coma by the time she arrived.

According to doctor Yuan Xiangyang, the two-metre-long bar had penetrated almost the whole length of her body.

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He said: 'It looked pretty bleak, the rod had caused severe internal damage and was also right next to her heart.

'If there had been any movement, the patient’s arteries would likely break and the patient would die instantly from massive blood loss.'

He led a team of surgeons in a five-hour operation to remove the pole from her body.

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Dr Yuan added: 'This should by rights have been a fatal injury. I would not have expected her to live through it, but luckily she did. She is an extraordinary woman.'

If she avoids infection, Wu should make a full recovery.