Defen who measured a gigantic 7ft 8in (2.36m), passed away last month
aged just 40, it emerged today.
At her peak, she also weighed over 31 stone (200kg) and had size 26 feet.
She reportedly died on the morning of November 13 in her hometown of
Zhucheng, eastern China.
Born in 1972, Yao developed gigantism due to a tumour on her pituitary
gland. By the age of 15, she stood at over two metres tall.
While playing for her school's basketball team, she fainted on court
and had to undergo a medical examination.
Doctors then discovered the tumour, which was releasing too much
growth hormone and causing excessive growth in her bones.
In 2006, it was removed and Yao finally stopped growing. The tumour
returned the following year but her family couldn't afford further
surgery.
A neighbour recalled how on the morning of Yao's death, her widowed
mother came running out of the family house .
The woman, named only as Zhang, reportedly said: "It was 9am in the
morning, just after breakfast, when her mother shouted that the girl
was hurt.
"People immediately rushed over to their home. I saw Yao lying on the
bed – she wasn't breathing.
"Later, her sister arrived and the doctor soon confirmed her death.
Her sad mother cried then fainted."
May her soul rest in peace…