Man Given 6 Months to Live Loses 76 Pounds on Diet of Protein Shakes and Fruit

A Durham, North Carolina man turned his life around after receiving serious medical news.

Derek Barnett, 55, was diagnosed with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease 10 years ago, according to a SWNS report.

At his heaviest, Barnett weighed 240 pounds and measured a size 38.

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Barnett, a construction worker currently unemployed due to health issues, dismissed his diagnosis, telling SWNS he “didn’t think about it at all.”

“Everyone has some kind of thing,” he said.

But the man’s condition worsened, progressing to cirrhosis and eventually hepatocellular carcinoma, also known as liver cancer.

In January 2024, Barnett received a letter from his doctor with bad news: he potentially only had six months to live if the cancer continued to grow.

“When they gave me that letter last year, it became real,” he reflected.

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“This note said: ‘If the cancer becomes aggressive, you have six months to live.’ I saved it, I looked at it every day, and it really tested me.”

Barnett’s doctors informed him that the best way to get healthy would be to lose weight – and he knew it was time to get motivated and take action.

“I thought, ‘OK, we can do this,’” he told SWNS. “I’m a fruit junkie. I’ve basically been on a fruit diet.”

Barnett began limiting his diet to “very small meals” throughout the day, involving lots of his favorite fruits.

“It’s about eating right, staying active and never giving up.”

“I can eat a whole watermelon a day, but I also eat apples, oranges and grapes, depending on the season,” he said.

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“I also do protein shakes. I’m not vegetarian, but I don’t eat a lot of meat because it’s too filling for me.”

Barnett recently reached a record weight of 164 pounds. He reported that he lost weight while following the diet and that his “scores looked fantastic.”

“I haven’t weighed this since I was probably 15,” he said.

Barnett said he still has work to do to tone his muscles to “make up for lost skin,” but he continues to move forward.

“My clothes are a little too big and baggy, and it’s hard to afford clothes when you’re losing weight so quickly, but I feel good,” he said.

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Barnett has also managed to maintain his weight by staying active, despite his physical limitations.

“I have osteoarthritis in my right knee and I need a knee replacement,” he revealed. “I can’t jog or climb stairs, but I do what I can.”

He reported that his workouts usually involve sitting in chairs and “using small dumbbells.”

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“I’m non-stop, but I do it without getting hurt,” he added. “Losing weight is just about staying active and finding whatever you can do to get off the couch.”

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Barnett told SWNS that he will know the status of his prognosis in February and hopes to inspire others with his successful weight loss journey.

“If I can do it, anyone can,” he said. “I did everything the doctors told me to do. It’s about eating right, staying active and never giving up.”

“I was 55 and I’m 90,” he continued. “Now I’m 55, and I still have 20.”

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Barnett hopes to return to work and live a “full and active life,” according to SWNS.

“I want to ring this bell the next time I see my doctors and tell them I did it,” he said. “This is just the beginning.”