A Durham, North Carolina, man has turned his life around after receiving grave medical news.
Derek Barnett, 55, was diagnosed with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease 10 years ago, according to a report from SWNS.
At his heaviest, Barnett weighed 240 pounds and was a size 38.
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Barnett, a construction worker who is currently unemployed due to health issues, brushed off his diagnosis, telling SWNS that he "didn’t think anything of it."
"Everybody’s got a type of thing," he said.
But the man's condition worsened, progressing into cirrhosis and eventually hepatocellular carcinoma, also known as liver cancer.
In January 2024, Barnett was given a letter from his doctor that broke some bad news – he potentially had only six months to live if the cancer continued to grow.
"When they gave me that letter last year, it got real," he reflected.
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"That note said, 'If the cancer gets aggressive, you have six months to live.' I saved it, looked at it every day, and it beat me up."
Barnett’s doctors informed him that the best way to regain his health would be to lose weight – and he knew it was time to get motivated and act.
"I was like, ‘OK, we can do this,’" he told SWNS. "I’m a fruit-aholic. I went on a major fruit diet basically."
Barnett began limiting his diet to "very tiny meals" throughout the day, involving lots of his favorite fruits.
"I can eat a whole watermelon in a day, but I also eat apples, oranges and grapes — whatever’s in season," he said.
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"I do protein shakes, too. I’m not a vegetarian, but I don’t eat meat much, because it’s too filling for me."
Barnett recently hit a record-low weight of 164 pounds. He reported that he dropped the pounds by following this diet, and that his "scores are looking fantastic."
"I haven’t weighed this since I was probably 15 years old," he said.
Barnett said he still has work to do in toning his muscles to "catch up to the skin loss," but he continues to push forward.
"My clothes are a little too big and baggy, and it’s hard to afford clothing when you lose weight so quickly, but I feel fantastic," he said.
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Barnett has also kept the weight off by staying active, despite his physical limitations.
"I have osteoarthritis in my right knee and need a knee replacement," he revealed. "I can’t go jogging or do stairs, but I do what I can."
He reported that his workouts usually involve sitting in chairs and "using little dumbbells."
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"I’m nonstop, but I do it without hurting myself," he added. "Losing weight is just [about] staying active, finding anything you can possibly do to get off a couch."
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Barnett told SWNS that he will find out the status of his prognosis in February, and that he hopes to inspire others with his successful weight-loss journey.
"If I can do this, anyone can," he said. "I’ve done everything the doctors told me to do. It’s about eating right, staying active and never giving up."
"I was 55 going on 90," he went on. "Now I’m 55, going back on 20 again."
Barnett hopes to return to work and live a "full, active life," according to SWNS.
"I want to ring that bell next time I see my doctors and tell them I’ve done it," he said. "This is just the beginning."
