An Egyptian woman, believed to be the world’s heaviest woman weighing 500kg is to fly to India for weight-reduction surgery.

The BBC has reported that Eman Ahmed Abd El Aty, 36, will be flown on a chartered plane to Mumbai, India, where high-profile bariatric surgeon Dr Muffazal Lakdawala plans to operate on her.

Ms Abd El Aty’s family says she has been unable to leave her home for 25 years and estimates her weight to be 500kg.

Dr Lakdawala, who is known in India for having done weight-reduction surgery on Indian ministers Nitin Gadkari and Venkaiah Naidu, told the BBC that based on his assessment of Ms Abd El Aty’s medical reports and photographs, he estimates her weight to be “at least 450kg”.

At either weight, Ms Abd El Aty is easily the world’s heaviest woman, as the current Guinness record holder is Pauline Potter of the United States who in 2010 had a recorded weight of 292kg.

Ms Abd El Aty’s family says she had a birth weight of 5kg at birth and was diagnosed with elephantiasis — a condition whereby body parts swell due to parasitic infection, Dr Lakdawala told the BBC.

“They said when she was 11, she had gained immense weight because of which she could not stand up and would crawl.

“And then she suffered a stroke which left her bedridden and she has not been able to leave home since then.”

Ma'am , Eman Ahmed (Egypt) 500kgs requested me 2 save her pls help me get her a medical visa as refused thru normal process @SushmaSwaraj pic.twitter.com/93Fwz6m8iL

— Dr Muffi (@DrMuffi) December 5, 2016

But Dr Lakdawala does not believe that Ms Abd El Aty has elephantiasis, but suffers from obesity-related lymphoedema which causes gigantic swelling of legs.

Dr Lakdawala said Ms Abd El Aty’s sister — who with her mother cares for Ms Abd El Aty — made contact in October after which he launched a fundraising campaign to bring her to India for the surgery.

The surgeon said Ms Abd El Aty would have to stay in India for two to three months for the surgery and post-operative treatment, but that it would take two to three years to get her body weight under 100kg.

“I’m hopeful that I will be able to help her, I won’t say I’m confident because I think that would be an exaggeration,” he added.