A MAN from Frome is trying to raise £15,000 to pay for private treatment to have his left leg amputated because of constant and agonising pain caused by treatment for a bone tumour in his leg.
Cricketer Rob Franks, who was born and raised in Frome, was treated for a bone tumour in his left leg in 2011 and again in 2013 when the tumour returned.
The second operation left him with no sensation from the knee down in his left leg and needing the use of crutches and a wheelchair to aid his mobility.
A keen sportsman, Rob refused to let his disability hold him back and joined the Dorset Disability Cricket Club, but an accident in 2014 during a match left him needing another operation to repair a break in his femur. Rob said, “I have been told that the fracture won’t ever heal which isn’t the news I was hoping for. I’m currently on 29 of the strongest pain-killing medication available but it just doesn’t stop the pain at all.
“Eventually the body will become resistant to the medication to the point where the tablets will do nothing at all. I’m unable to sleep at night due to the pain. I’m often moody because of the pain I’m in and I just can’t go on like this any more.
“I have lost over 50% of muscle tone in my left leg and I’m unable to bend my knee. I honestly can’t describe the pain I’m in 24 hours a day. I have to wear a brace all the time and sometimes my leg still collapses.
“I have thought long and hard about what the best thing to do is and what course of action to take. My doctor agrees that an amputation would be the best thing for me.
“The NHS won’t consider me for an amputation and just want me to continue taking medication to manage the pain, so a private amputation is my only hope. It’s not that they don’t think I’d benefit from it, but I think they are still resistant to the idea of a leg being chopped off when it’s not already hanging off!
“My wife Carla is fully supporting me with this and agrees this would be the best thing all round. I don’t want to be in pain any longer. I want to be able to play with my two children in the garden, I don’t want to say “No” to them any more.
“I want to be the husband my wife deserves and not someone who is forced to stay at home and not go out on walks and family days due to the pain debilitating me.
“With the way prosthetic limbs have come on over the last few years, I guarantee that I will have the life that I had before all my problems. I know there can be complications and problems, and I’m not naive to that – I have friends who have had amputations and I know it’s not always plain sailing. However, I don’t feel that I have anything to lose – I have a chance to be pain reduced or even better, pain free, and so I have to grab that chance and (pardon the pun) run with it!
“All money raised will pay a surgeon to amputate my left leg and also pay for a brand new prosthetic limb. This will change my life. Please if you can spare any change it would be amazing.”
To support Rob please visit his fundraising page: www.gofundme.com/robs-amputation-fund
