NyDailyNews.com: She should be basking in positive attention for her amazing longevity, but instead people just stare silently at the left side of her head.

A 101-year old Chinese grandmother has sprouted a horn that resembles a goat's on her forehead, the Daily Mail reports.

The mysterious protrusion began growing on Zhang Ruifang, 101, of Linlou village in Henan province, last year. It has since grown to almost 2 1/2 inches and another now appears to emerging on the other side of the mother of sevens forehead, according to the Daily Mail.

The youngest of her six sons, Zhang Guozheng, 60, said the family didn't pay much attention when a patch of rough skin formed on her head last year.

"But as time went on, a horn grew out of her head, and it is now 6 centimeters [2.36 inches] long,' he said. "Now something is also growing on the right side of her forehead."


A small consolation for Zhang is that she says the horn doesn't cause her any pain, Bild.com reports.

While it is not known exactly what the growth is, it is said to resemble a cutaneous horn.
The funnel-shaped growths, most of which grow to only a few millimeters, can extend a number of inches, the Mail reports.

Cutaneous horns are made up of compacted keratin, the protein in hair and nails in humans, and horns, wool and feathers in animals.

The growths usually develop in fair-skinned elderly adults who have a history of significant sun exposure, but growths of this size are rare.

The growths are most common in elderly people, The Mail reports, and can sometimes be cancerous but are benign in more than half of cases.

Common causes of cutaneous horns are warts, skin cancer and actinic keratoses, patches of scaly skin that develop on skin exposed to the sun, such as the forearm, face and scalp.

Cutaneous horns can be removed surgically, but this does not treat the underlying cause.