Tyrone Bowd scrotal lymphedema makes plea for funds for lifesaving surgery
A young man has made a heart-wrenching plea for people to donate towards his lifesaving surgery as his scrotum now weighs at least 6kg - and won't stop growing.
Tyrone Bowd, 25, from Willowbank in Queensland, can barely walk as his scrotum has tripled in size in just the past 12 months and now hangs below his knees after being diagnosed with the rare condition of scrotal lymphedema two years ago.
Mr Bowd, who also deals with the daily struggles of being autistic, posted a video on his Facebook, begging people to help raise the remaining $64,000 needed for the surgery in California.
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Tyrone Bowd can barely walk as his scrotum has tripled in size in just the past 12 months and now hangs below his knees after being diagnosed with the rare condition of scrotal lymphedema two years ago
The 25 -year-old as made a heart-wrenching plea for people to donate towards his lifesaving surgery as his scrotum now weighs at least 6kg - and won't stop growing
'Everywhere I go everybody asks me how do you do it? Sometimes in life it's not easy to be like me doing things I can't do,' he said in the video.
'I want to go to the USA and get better and I want to be the happiest boy that mum can see so she can say 'yay! he's back!
'It's hard for everyone to watch me go through it - happy is my world, happy is how I want to be.
'My life is not a documentary, it's a hard life - please do something nice for me - please help.'
Despite his family being on a fundraising mission for the past year, they have still only managed to raise $46,000 and are at a loss at what else they can do to get the word out about the urgent need for Mr Bowd to get the specialist surgery.
The agonising condition causes infections that makes his temperature soar, his heart rate to increase and his body to turn septic which has seen him hospitalised three times.
Dr Joel Geldman, who has performed the specialist procedure at least 175 times in California, including the famous case of Wesley Warren's 45kg scrotum, has even offered to waive his fees for the operation.
Mr Bowd can barely walk as his scrotum drags down so much that it's bigger than his leg span so when he walks it hurts his back, hips, knees and ankles
His mother Tanya Bowd said her son’s quality of life is rapidly declining as his scrotum was impacting greatly on the things he used to take for granted.
'The bulk of it drags down so much that it's bigger than his leg span so when he walks it hurts his back, hips, knees and ankles,' she told Daily Mail Australia.
'I have to take him to the toilet, shower him and do his shoe laces up.'
Mr Bowd can't even walk short distances without seriously suffering.
'He gets severe rashes from short walks and has to sit in a cool bath because of the chaffing.'
She has run out of ideas for his clothing and underwear.
Needless to say, it is also taking its toll on Mr Bowd's psychological state also.
His mother Tanya Bowd is shocked her son's heartbreaking story has not been able to attract enough funds
'He often feels humiliated and angry that people stare at him he has highs and lows most days,' she said.
'He has just wanted to give up and for us to give up and not worry about him anymore which is very difficult but we just pep him up with more fundraisers.'
Ms Bowd is shocked her son's heartbreaking story has not been able to attract enough funds.
'I didn't think it would take this long to reach out to people it's so frustrating when you see other people raise the funds overnight,' she said.
Mr Bowd, whose watermelon-sized scrotum caused him to have a motorbike accident at his Queensland home two years ago
'Family and friends have been supporting us on this journey but many have exhausted themselves given up and retreated to getting on with their lives - leaving us with the feeling of despair that our lives will never be the same.
'All I need is somebody to help to save my son's life.'
Ms Bowd said as a mother the last two years have been an emotional roller coaster ride
'I can’t sleep and I’m always doing research about how to help my son,’ she said.
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Share‘Some days I get to the point where I think we won’t get the help we need but as a mother I can’t stop.
'I’m 100 per cent committed to saving my son’s life.’
Ms Bowd said her son, who weighs 112kg who also has an inverted penis, had sought help from more than 100 medical professionals including doctors at Ipswich Hospital.
Melbourne surgeon Dr Ramin Shayan reached out to the 24-year-old's mother Tanya on Monday with the offer of free surgery
What causes scrotal lymphedema?
- Scrotal lymphedema is a disease caused by obstruction of lymphatic vessels draining the scrotum.
- The rare occurrence of the infections that cause scrotal lymphedema in Western nations makes the condition an uncommon disease outside of Africa and Asia.
- Diuretics can be of benefit for cases caused by fluid overload or congestive heart failure
- Mild and acute cases may benefit from steroids
‘No one can help us in Australia,’ she said. ‘I had doctors discuss building a team to give surgery a go only to be told by a urologist that if I was to sign on the dotted line and allow anyone in Australia to operate I would be signing my son’s life away.’
She said her son no longer had any faith in doctors and was 'banging his head against a wall' in frustration that no one medical professional in Australia could help his heartbreaking situation.
'One response I got was they could give him a sex change but couldn’t repair his scrotum so I basically threw my hands in the air,' she said.
'A couple of doctors said they could build a team and give it a go and I said "it’s not a game of cricket mate, he’s not a guinea pig".'
His family were left with no choice but to hold a car drive in Ipswich, Queensland, in May last year to raise funds for Tyrone to fly to California to undergo lifesaving surgery performed by Dr Joel Geldman.
Ms Bowd has been liaising with Dr Geldman who she said guaranteed that he and his medical team could perform an operation to save Tyrone’s life.
Tyrone was faced with having to raise $100,000 to have the life-saving surgery in America after being diagnosed with scrotal lymphedema a year ago
Wesley Warren famously had his scrotal lymphedema corrected by Dr Geldman after going public on shock jock Howard Stern's radio show to talk about the plight of his 45kg scrotum.
Mr Warren died in March after suffering two heart attacks when he was hospitalised due to complications from diabetes.
Dr Geldman, stated in an email to Ms Bowd that he had performed the procedure 175 times.
‘I’ve contacted Dr Geldman and I have had continuous correspondence with him,’ she said.
‘He has been monitoring Tyrone’s condition via medical reports CT scans, ultrasounds and photographs.’
Dr Joel Geldman, who has performed the specialist procedure at least 175 times in California, including the famous case of Wesley Warren's 45kg scrotum (pictured) has even offered to waive his fees for the operation
Ms Bowd said that maintaining a normal family life was difficult.
'Tyrone needs help to go to the toilet and he has a lot of difficulty walking. He broke his leg in a motorbike accident earlier this year and that’s because his scrotum was a hindrance on the bike,' she said.
His scrotum is so big that he can’t ride a bike anymore and family and friends pitched in to get him a quad bike.'
Ms Bowd said Tyrone had a heart of gold and rarely complained about the pain.
'He is always trying to make everyone he meets laugh, he loves fast cars, motor bikes, playing jokes, listening to music and spending time with people,' she said.
For more information on Saturday's event to support Tyrone click on The Road Ahead for Tyrone
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