Man with five-stone lump hanging from stomach to knees told NHS will not remove it

A man "nearly died" due to a five-stone lump hanging from his stomach but claims the is refusing him surgery to remove it.

Alan Bromyard, 48 and from Long Eaton, Derbyshire, has lived with the for almost two years and says his condition 'keeps getting worse'.

But despite the lump gravely affecting his welfare and daily life, Mr Bromyard has so far been met twice by rejection from the Derby and Derbyshire Integrated Care Board (ICB). His condition is so severe that it resulted in in mid-August, putting Mr Bromyard in hospital for 14 days, six of which he spent in ICU.

He said: "I nearly died. It hangs down to my knees, it's a right mess and needs to be removed. They class the operation as cosmetic and say that's why I can't have the funding. It's a 5st lump of fluid, I can't lose it through dieting so what are they expecting me to do? I need help, I'm heartbroken."

Mr Bromyard has had to give up the things he enjoys because of his condition, including his small herd of pedigree cows. "I have farmed all my adult life but I had to sell them because I couldn't work them anymore," he said.

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"I was out fishing or shooting most weekends. Now I'm just in bed. I can't go up the stairs, I can't drive to my appointments. My knees and hips have gone. I'm missing my life because of this. A nurse once told me it's cruel living like this and it really stuck with me because it is.

"It feels like I'm carrying a dead-weight toddler around all the time. It breaks down, it leaks - it's just a mess. One week I had to use £176 worth of bandages because it leaks that much."

Mr Bromyard said two funding applications have been rejected despite his surgeon saying he would "thoroughly benefit from the surgery". The application letter describes the need for "an apronectomy [surgical procedure to remove skin from the lower abdomen] for this patient who has a large abdominal pannus [abnormal layer of fibrovascular or granulation tissue] that is severely affecting his mood and daily activities," reported .

A response letter from the Derby and Derbyshire ICB reads: "This request has been reviewed by our screening pair which consists of a Public Health Consultant and a representative from the Derbyshire Integrated Care Board. This request has been declined by our screening panel."

Since the rejection in July 2023, Mr Bromyard's surgeon has submitted another funding request, which was turned down in August. Mr Bromyard says his surgeon, his GP and the head of the lymphedema clinic at Nottingham University , where he has been receiving treatment, are now preparing a third request.

A spokesperson for NHS Derby and Derbyshire ICB said: "We cannot comment on individual cases. Some treatments are not normally available on the NHS and in these circumstances people are able to request individual funding requests where a service, intervention or treatment falls outside of existing service provision.

"The application for funding is made by the patient's clinician who is required to demonstrate that the circumstances are exceptional. This decision-making process ensures that each request is considered in a fair and transparent way, with decisions based on the best available evidence and in accordance with our individual funding request policy."