A Bristol University student is desperate for 'life-changing' surgery after a rugby accident left him suffering chronic headaches. George Tupholme, 20, has described the 'absolute nightmare' of living with Occipital Neuralgia, a condition which causes electric-shock-like pain in the back of the head.
George, a medical student originally from Sheffield, was 15 when he was knocked unconscious at a rugby game. He suffered intense pain in his neck, and went to hospital where they carried out scans. When nothing came back, George went to a private doctor, who tried injecting botox into his nerve, and a procedure called radiofrequency ablation, which involves heating the nerve with a radiofrequency needle.
George says the procedure left him pain-free for a while but when he had it again at Christmas it didn't work, and left him "in a lot of pain." He eventually found a surgeon who told him of a new procedure to cure the condition, whereby a pulse generator is inserted into his chest and wires are threaded under the collarbone to his occipital nerves.
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George says he is desperate to have the surgery which will give him a "new lease of life." He has started a GoFundMe to raise the £30,000 he needs.
"It was in 2017," he said. "I can't remember it happening. It was a normal tackle and then I was left on the floor unconscious.
"I had a pain in my neck, I went straight to hospital where they did loads of scans. I had loads of headaches, so I was referred to a headache clinic. They said you need nerve blockers.
"I had a nerve blocking procedure during my GCSEs. When it came back clear they said there was not much we can do, so I was forced to go down the private route.
"I had a few different treatments, like botox injections into the nerve, more steroid and nerve blocks, and radiofrequency ablation. The first time it worked I was pain-free for six months. This Christmas, I had one final radiofrequency ablasion. It didn't work at all, I am still in a lot of pain now."
George says the accident has had a "huge impact" on his life, both physically and mentally.
"This has had a huge impact on my life. Before the accident, I was playing rugby for Yorkshire. I was active and fit, I snowboarded a lot. I used to be really outgoing.
"I went from being active and social to having to go home and rest because I was in too much pain. The entirety of sixth form was a write-off. Luckily I managed to make some good friends at uni, but it was really difficult to meet people.
"Academically it's hard, going into placement and getting up to go to lectures can be an absolute nightmare." It was while reading research papers that George found a doctor offering a new surgery to cure his condition.
"I found another doctor when I was reading research papers, who was performing a new surgery," he said. "I went to see him in London and he said it is completely treatable, and it has a 50 per cent chance to cure you.
"The procedure I need is to insert a pacemaker-like pulse generator into my chest. The surgeon will then thread wires under my collarbone and up into my neck up to my occipital nerves, where he will lay the probe.
"This surgery will give me a new lease of life as currently, all I can do is short walks and some university work.
"Anything people could donate towards the £30,000 cost would be life-changing for me, and I would greatly appreciate it."
You can donate to George's fundraiser here.
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