4. Paroxysmal Extreme Pain Disorder

Paroxysmal Extreme Pain Disorder is an extremely rare disease which usually begins to take its toll while a child is still in utero. As its name suggests, extreme pain is the main offender and involves the eyes, jaw, and rectum, and produces a red, flushed appearance during flares. Originally called Familial Rectal Pain Syndrome because it primarily caused horrendous pain in the rectal and abdominal region during elimination, this winner of a disease has proven itself worthy of reclassification through the discovery that other areas of the body are also affected. So far, only 15 known cases of PEPD exist, but in each of the 15 cases, symptoms have persisted throughout their lives with very little relief. There is no known cure, and while a few patients have found the medication Carbamazepine to be slightly helpful, on the whole, doctor’s just don’t know how to treat it.

3. Cancrum Oris

Just as painful as it is shocking in appearance (the above image is an extremely mild version of the disease; if you have a very, very strong stomach, Google it), Cancrum Oris is a gangrenous disease that eats away at the tissue of the face and genitals. It kills 80% of the people it targets, and though it’s treatable with antibiotics and improved hygiene and nutrition, once the damage is done, surgery is the only way to treat the already affected areas. There are several suspected causes and it only occurs in the poorest regions of the world. Although it doesn’t register as high on the physical pain scale as some of the others, it ranks toward the top in terms of the mental and emotional pain that it causes.

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