We went to Bristol childrens’ hospital yesterday, to have a first meeting with the team that might operate on Thomas if he is to have SDR surgery.
The meeting went well. We liked the team and the way they delivered the information to us. Thomas was great, and seemed to like the team too.
I think they feel he could be a potential candidate, but that he needs to build up more muscle strength in his core and pelvis first. They have suggested to come back in February and have a more complete assessment. This is a very thorough assessment, and could potentially be followed quite quickly by surgery. By “quickly” I mean April or May.
That February assessment would be the first time we would have to pay privately, since today’s meeting was covered by the NHS.
So, what do we do now? Thomas needs to make significant progress between now and then in regard to his core strength. Stepping up weekly physio and the horse riding should help here, along with encouraging him to use his walker and sticks as much as possible. They suggested trying Botox for his hamstrings to ‘trial’ how he would cope without the spasticity, so we shall look in to this once more.
We also have a better idea of costs now too. The money you have raised so far (nearly £10,000) will cover the physio Thomas will need to prepare him for the surgery, so thank you again for all your support so far. The surgery itself will cost about £25,000. And longer term, another £15,000 per year for 2 to 3 years for on-going physio.
help thomas 2 dance 