Man has penis removed after olive oil injections

Antonio Banderas promotes his olive oil Hojiblanca during a press conference in Antequera Malaga 29 October 2003. (Getty Images)

A 50-year-old Thai man had to have his penis removed after decades of trying to make it bigger through injections of olive oil resulted in his member developing cancer.

The practise of injecting olive oil to boost penis girth is common in Thailand, and can also involve bees wax, silicon or paraffin.

One Bangkok hospital claimed it receives 40 patients a month complaining of side effects.

But this case (not involving Antonio Banderas, above) topped them all. "This is the biggest genital surgery we have ever done as we found cancer,' said Sirikul Jiraranaikhajorn, spokeswoman for the Police General Hospital in Bangkok.

For the benefit of prospective "extra virgin" injectors, she added:"A woman will love a man not because of the size."