A patient who arrived at hospital with agonising chest pain amazed medics when they discovered it was caused by a toothbrush he had swallowed 52 years ago.

The 64-year-old grandpa, named only as Mr Yang, from Chuzhou, in Anhui, China, went to the hospital after experiencing discomfort in his chest.

And scans revealed that the source of the pain was a long-forgotten toothbrush he had swallowed as a 12-year-old.

Photo shows toothbrush stuck in man's body in Chuzhou, Anhui, China, in footage posted on 13 June 2025. He had it stuck for 52 years. Note: Photo is a screenshot from a video. (Newsflash/NX)

Astonished doctors found the plastic brush still surprisingly intact, jammed in the patient's oesophagus.

Yang told medics he had swallowed the brush as a child but was worried he would get into trouble with his parents if he told them.

Instead, he hoped that his body would eventually dissolve the toothbrush.

Surgeons removed the brush in a delicate procedure but before discharging Wang they warned him it could have killed him if it had not been removed.

Post-surgery photos show the toothbrush still in fair condition ,almost untouched by 52 years in a human digestive tract.

(Joseph Golder / newsX)