Richard Curry, 71, of Loveclough in Lancashire, has an
implant of the end of his nose held on by magnets after having cancer surgery
(Picture: Cascade)
A
pensioner has been fitted with a magnetic nose after undergoing cancer
surgery.
Richard Curry, 71, had his real nose removed to stop the spread of
malignant melanoma in his septum – the thin strip between the nostrils.
He now has magnetic implants in his cheekbones and nasal
cavity to hold a prosthetic nose in place.
Speaking to NHS chiefs at the Royal Blackburn Hospital – where he
underwent the surgery – he said: ‘Losing my nose was something of a shock,
but I didn’t have much choice because this kind of cancer is one of the most
dangerous you can get.
‘I was just grateful it was caught in time and removed, and when
they mentioned they could attach a new one with magnets, I just thought it was
amazing.’
Mr Curry’s nose was removed in 2013 after he found traces of blood
in a tissue. The implants were inserted over the course of the following year,
a period in which he wore ‘stick-on jobs’.
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He added: ‘In the early days I wasn’t quite sure how much adhesive to put on, and my stick-on nose would sometimes fall off in hot weather, for example.
‘And there was an incident in Asda which gave the girl on the till
a bit of a shock.
‘The implants were all-ready last September, after four months to
bed in, and I was so pleased with the results that I wrote to the chief
executive.
‘It’s comfortable and it looks good, and I’ve even still got my
sense of smell.
‘I just need to go in to get it touched up for colour every now
and then, like before going on holiday so it matches my skin.’
Mr Curry, who lives in Loveclough, Lancashire with partner James
Rogerson, wears the prosthetic note all day, but removes it before going to bed
at night.
Last month, a check-up found that the cancer had not returned, and
Mr Curry praised his consultants when he met an NHS board last week.
He said: ‘I have great regard for the staff at Blackburn and the
prosthetics team at Burnley General Hospital. They are all my heroes.’
Paddy
Morar, an ear, nose, and throat specialist who treated Mr Curry, said: ‘Cancers
of the nose are not common at all, you probably only get one every three years
or so, so this was a very unusual procedure.
‘Magnets are used quite commonly with prosthetic ears, but this
was the first time we had used them to attach a nose.
‘Richard couldn’t have radiotherapy so it had to be surgery, and
we were extremely impressed by his attitude throughout, he’s very strong
character and a model patient.
‘It just shows there is life after this kind of radical surgery’.
