In a stunning display of medical achievement and a terrifying glimpse into what can lurk inside a human body, doctors in Sri Lanka have removed a 3.1kg (6.8lb) bladder stone from a 55-year-old man. They believe it's the largest of its kind on record - which is a bit like saying you found the biggest turd in the toilet bowl. Impressive, but let's not dwell on it.

The procedure took place last week at a hospital in Trincomalee, in the east of the country. The patient had been admitted after suffering a stroke, but during treatment, doctors noticed he was having trouble urinating. Surprise! They found stones in his urinary bladder. And not just any stones - a stone the size of an ostrich egg, weighing as much as a full-term baby. Because why should pregnancy be the only way to carry around that kind of weight?

"According to available records, it is the largest bladder stone ever documented and removed through surgery," said Dr. Prahalahan Balakrishnan, who led the surgery, to BBC Sinhala. He added that the patient is in "very good health," which is reassuring, considering he was just lugging around a mineral deposit that could double as a paperweight for a very large desk.

The patient remains hospitalized, receiving treatment for his other medical conditions. Dr. Balakrishnan estimates the stone had been resident in the bladder for about five to ten years. That's a long time to carry around a rock that's bigger than your fist. Bladder stones form when minerals in urine crystallize, especially when the bladder doesn't empty completely, leaving concentrated urine to turn into solid lumps. Small ones, like grains of sand, can pass on their own. But stones bigger than 1cm often block urine flow and require medical intervention. Anything larger than 4cm is considered giant. This one was 17cm long. Let that sink in.

For context, the previous record holder, according to Guinness World Records, was a 1.9kg (4.2lb) stone removed from a patient in Brazil in 2003, measuring 17.9cm. So this new stone weighs over a kilogram more, even if it's slightly shorter. It's like the heavyweight champion of bladder stones - undisputed, unless someone else has been hiding a bowling ball in their bladder.

So, hats off to the medical team in Sri Lanka for their surgical prowess. And to the patient, for unknowingly carrying around a geological specimen that would make a museum proud. We're just glad he's doing well, because that must have been a relief - in more ways than one.