Story By: Buli Liang, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Asia Wire Report

A young man has undergone an operation to remove a lighter that he was challenged to swallow while drinking with pals.

The incident took place in the city of Shenyang in the north-eastern Chinese province of Liaoning while Mr. Li was drinking with friends at dinner.

According to reports, when the group became a little tipsy, one of them challenged Li to ‘eat’ a three-inch-long lighter for a laugh.

Pictures Credit: AsiaWire

After the dinner, Li went home and everything was normal until he suffered tummy pains and wanted to vomit the next day.

His father then learned about the dinner prank and took his son to a nearby hospital.

According to local media, Doctor Shang Shu used a gastroscope with a special loop to fish the lighter out of Li’s stomach.

The operation reportedly lasted just three minutes and took place 29 hours after the young man swallowed the lighter.

Doctor Shu said that it was a potentially dangerous situation as “once the liquid inside the lighter leaks in his body, his organs would be severely burned.

He added: “Li was lucky he arrived in time, the lighter was still in his stomach.”

Doctor Shu said that he once had to operate on a man to remove a knife and fork.