The true story of Adam Rainer.
There is one thing about living in the past which consistently sends a shudder down my spine: their medical care.
I look back on every medical intervention I’ve ever had, and imagine my life without them. My wisdom teeth would be pushing into my other teeth, causing enormous pain. I’d be getting constant infections from my tonsils.
That tumor I had removed from my neck? It wouldn’t have gone anywhere. It would’ve just kept growing—until I had a baseball-sized lump bulging under my skin. Maybe I’d have attempted to have it removed, and passed from the infection afterwards.
Scratch that—none of this would have happened at all. My mother would’ve died in childbirth. I was a 10-pounder, and I only made it into the world thanks to a C-section.
But this isn’t my story.
This is the story of one of the most unusual, extraordinary, and downright rare medical cases you’ll probably ever come across. His life was shaped entirely by a condition so extreme, it pushed the human body to its outer limits—and then kept pushing.
1899—going from small to enormous
Adam Rainer was born in the rolling green mountain hills of Gratz, Austria. His parents were working class and normal-sized.
At his birth, the doctor noted his unusual appearance. His limbs were oddly proportioned. His facial features were subtly exaggerated, and he seemed unusually frail for a full-term baby. But nothing that screamed “medical marvel” just yet—just a strange-looking infant in a small mountain town.
As he kept growing, it became clear he had achondroplasia, a common form of dwarfism. By the time he was 19, he stood just 4 feet 8 inches tall. His head, hands, and feet were average-sized. But the rest of his body stayed short.
Here he is at age 11. You can already spot the symptoms:
Integrating into normal life
Europe was thrown into chaos after World War I broke out. Like many young men, Adam tried to enlist. But his height and unusual appearance kept him out. He was considered unfit for service because standard gear didn’t fit him, and the army saw him as a liability on the front lines.
Then, at 21, something strange happened. Adam started to grow—and not just a little. It was rapid, intense, and completely unexpected. Little did he know, a tumor had formed on his pituitary gland, flooding his body with excess growth hormone.
From the outside, you might think that dwarfism and gigantism would somehow cancel each other out. They don’t. Dwarfism stems from a recessive gene mutation that restricts bone growth. Gigantism, by contrast, is caused by a hormonal overload—often triggered by a tumor on the pituitary gland, like Adam’s.
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Between the two, gigantism is far harsher to the body over time. People with dwarfism typically live long, fruitful and fully functional lives.
Untreated gigantism is different. It creeps up on you and slowly pushes your body past its limits. You grow past what your bones, joints, and organs (heart, especially) can handle.
Your body struggles to circulate adequate oxygen. Your blood pressure increases. Your skeletal structure becomes inflamed. Joint and back problems arrive in spades.
Sadly, there weren’t any effective treatments for gigantism (it would be another 50 years before standardized, highly effective treatments became routine). Consequently, Adam grew taller year after year.
His pituitary gland was stuck in overdrive, constantly pumping out growth hormone—the same kind typically active during childhood. As a result, his head, shoulders, hands, and feet grew to massive proportions.
In just 12 years, Adam’s shoe size jumped from a 10 to a 20. His height shot up from 4’8″ to an astonishing 7’1″. This was also in a time when the average man in America was only 5’7. There were no accommodations for him. Finding a bed and clothes was a huge task.
This rapid growth came at a cost to his well being. He became physically weak, unable to work, and struggled with hormonal changes. His muscles couldn’t adapt and grow fast enough, leaving him exhausted and fragile despite his towering size.
Finally, he found help.
Doctors A. Mandl and F. Windholz made the decision to operate, fully aware that the chances of success were slim. The tumor had been growing for so long that it had already caused significant damage, making the surgery a risky and uncertain endeavor.
Adam’s surgery was initially ruled a success.
They followed up with Adam several months later. He hadn’t grown any taller — but his spine had increased in curvature, indicating he was still growing.
Today, most people with gigantism are easily treated. However — they’re usually put on medications to regulate their growth hormone levels after.
Those medications weren’t available, so Adam kept growing.
His final height would be 7’8, making him the tallest of anyone on the planet at the time.
This is him from birth, all the way until his final height — and it includes him standing next to the shortest person in the world.
How did he make money?
Initially, he was able to work in various labor jobs (construction, renovations, stocking shelves).
After gigantism began raining health problems upon him, he struggled to work. He developed severe spinal curvature, arthritis, and circulatory problems that made moving around quite difficult.
He was able to work briefly in Freakshows (this term, and the event, are considered offensive today) and circuses, where he made money with tourists, who stared at him like a zoo animal.
Eventually, he was forced to live in a group home (mostly for the elderly) due to his incapacitation.
Like many who suffer from gigantism, he died young at 51. He was largely bedridden for the year up until his death.
It was a cruel and unfair fate to be born into. He simultaneously was born with two rare conditions, and in a time when treatments were vanishingly rare.
As you go about your day, please take a moment to appreciate the incredible progress of modern medicine. In only the past century, we’ve seen more advancements than in all of history before it. Not long ago, many of us would have languished and suffered from ailments that were left untreated, or worse, untreatable. We have much to be grateful for, even if it doesn’t feel like it in the present moment.
