He came to the United States earlier this year to work out with professional basketball trainers in the hopes of one day making it into the NBA. He has even participated in private work-outs with several NBA teams, some of which later suggested medical testing due to their concerns over his lack of stamina and endurance.

Sun Ming Ming took their advice, and on June 26th, it was determined that he had a tumor pressed against his pituitary gland. The tumor was preventing proper production of testosterone, thus explaining the low stamina and endurance. It also was instigating prolongued over-production of growth hormone (GH), a condition known as "acromegaly" that causes various parts of the body to sustain abnormal and unstoppable growth. If left untreated, acromegaly often results in serious illness and premature death.

Acromegaly can be treated via three methods: surgical removal of the tumor, drug therapy, and radiation therapy of the pituitary. The goals of treatment are to reduce GH production to normal levels, to relieve the pressure that the growing pituitary tumor exerts on the surrounding brain areas, to preserve normal pituitary function, and to reverse or ameliorate the symptoms of acromegaly. Doctors have determined that the best course of action in Sun Ming Ming's case is for immediate surgical removal of the tumor.

Surgery has been tenatively scheduled scheduled for September 26th, to be performed by Dr. Hrayr Shahinian, director of the Skull Base Institute, at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. The surgery calls for Dr. Shahinian to use fiber-optics to reach the tumor through an incision in the nose and, with special tools, remove the tumor tissue. This procedure is called transsphenoidal surgery, and has already been postponed once due to lack of funds. Although there is a new date scheduled for the surgery, September 26th, it is only tentatively scheduled, and will be postponed again if Sun Ming Ming does not have enough funding to pay for it. The surgery, ten year follow-up treatments and therapy are estimated to cost over $100,000.