death_date death_place birth_place imagesize name birth_date yearsactive article_title birth_name death_cause
13 august 2008 shelbyville , indiana , united states chicago , illinois , united states 150px sandy allen 18 june 1955 1976 -- 2008 sandy allen
 sandra elaine allen kidney and blood infections
sandy allen

sandra elaine `` sandy '' allen -lrb- june 18 , 1955 -- august 13 , 2008 -rrb- was a u.s. woman recognized as the tallest woman during her life according to guinness world records .
she was 7 ' 7 '' -lrb- 231 cm -rrb- in height .
allen wrote a book titled `` cast a giant shadow '' , and appeared in the `` guinness book of world records '' since 1976 .
although over the years other women have taken over the title , allen had held it for the last sixteen years of her life .
her abnormal height was due to a tumor in her pituitary gland that caused it to release growth hormone uncontrollably .
at the age of twenty-two years , she underwent surgery for the condition .
lacking this procedure , allen would have continued to grow and suffer further medical problems associated with gigantism .
she appeared in the academy award-winning italian film `` il casanova di federico fellini '' , in a tv movie called `` side show '' , and in a canadian/american documentary film called `` being different '' .
the new zealand band split enz wrote a song about her , `` hello sandy allen , '' released on their 1982 album `` time and tide '' .
allen never married and was reported to have never had a serious boyfriend .
in later years allen used a wheel-chair because her legs and back could not support her tall stature in a standing position .
at one point in her life , she was bedridden due to disease , causing atrophy of the muscles .
because of this limitation , she spent her last years in shelbyville , indiana , in the same retirement center as edna parker , the record holder of oldest living human at the time , who actually survived allen for a few months .
`` the indianapolis star '' reported that allen 's friend and caretaker , linda fox , as saying that allen had been suffering from kidney and blood infections ; allen died on august 13 , 2008 .
a scholarship has since been dedicated in her name at shelbyville high school .
