The elbow became infected in the stormy South Atlantic, and [Victor Yazykov] couldn't wait to seek medical help in Cape Town, South Africa - his next port of call - 600 miles away.

"The biggest danger is that the infection will spread. That would be very dangerous ... so we are going to do a surgical drainage of the abscess," [Daniel Carlin] e-mailed Yazykov last Wednesday.

When morning arrived, the batteries were charged and Yazykov wrote that he took aspirin to stop the ex026 . 0000.00cruciating pain. Aspirin thins the blood and slows the clotting process.