In April 1961, the Sixth Soviet Antarctic Expedition took a harrowing turn.
Doctor Leonid Rogozov, the team's only physician, began feeling weak and feverish, with an excruciating pain in his right side.
After a few days, it became clear that he had appendicitis, an infection that can cause the appendix to burst.
And Rogozov knew that if his appendix did rupture, it would likely kill him.
Outside a blizzard raged, making it dangerous for him to leave the station, or to have anyone else travel in.
So Rogozov faced a gut-wrenching choice: wait for help that may never come, or cut open his own abdomen and remove the appendix himself.
While Rogozov's predicament may have been extreme, appendicitis is not uncommon.
It affects roughly 1 in 12 people.
So, what causes appendicitis?
And why is this organ so prone to bursting?
