Three heart attacks since January, having difficulties with his parents and living in fear that his visa will expire is just the beginning of what 24-year-old Takumi Tanaka is coping with.
Tanaka was diagnosed with cardiac enlargement two years ago. However, it was not until January, when Tanaka had two heart attacks and then a stroke while riding on a bus from Osaka to Hiroshima, that his health began to deteriorate rapidly. In February, he suffered another heart attack and was diagnosed with ventricular septal defect, commonly known as a hole in the heart. Tanaka has three such holes.
Tanaka, who lives in Osaka's Abeno Ward, was born in Italy to a Japanese-Italian father and Taiwanese-Filipino mother. His parents covered the cost of the initial surgery after his stroke; however, they refuse to take further responsibility for their gay son, whom they refer to as their "child of sin."