A fit and healthy Scots teenager who suffers from four migraines a day says his life is "at a standstill" due to headaches caused by an egg-sized mass growing inside his skull.
Jack Dow from Aberdeen, began noticing the splitting pains when he was just 15, but the matter started to become unbearable last year. The now 18-year-old, who has been active his whole life and dreams of becoming a Royal Marine, was eventually bedridden with each migraine becoming more intense.
After numerous GP appointments, a CT scan ruled Jack had a 6cm growth of abnormal blood vessels forming inside his head, which was later identified as arteriovenous malformation (AVM) - a development of irregular connections between arteries and veins, which disrupts normal blood flow and oxygen circulation.
Surgeons told Jack's parents the NHS could not operate on their son without risk of making him blind or causing a stroke. Instead, the teenager will need to travel to the US for specialist treatment, which will cost around £147,000.
Brave Jack told the Record: "It hasn't been easy, when the migraines happen I just need to go to bed and sleep it off because it's so painful. It has brought my life to a standstill, I've always wanted to be a Royal Marine and we don't know if that will happen now.
"Knowing that goal might not come true basically makes me feel worthless. I'm not sure what the future will bring, it's hard for me to decide what I'll do next."
Recounting his son's diagnosis, dad Willie said: "It was a massive shock to us. He has been an active lad his whole life, he competed in trampolining, gymnastics and diving from a young age and has always been in loads of sports clubs.
"At first, we thought nothing of it and assumed it was just a sore head and that it was typical for a teenager to get them. Eventually, the pain became unbearable - he'd be sitting on his bed with his head in his hands crying because it was so sore.
"His peripheral vision would start to go and he could only see half of my face. When that happens, you know he is in pain.
"It has changed his life drastically, any sort of sport will raise his blood pressure and he gets drained very easily, even washing his car leaves him knackered. It's devastating, I want him to enjoy his life and live it to its fullest."
It is thought Jack has had the condition since birth. In order to remove the mass, he requires an embolisation procedure to block the forming of abnormal blood cells.
Afterwards, surgeons will then need to open Jack's skull to remove the malformation. Without surgery, the teen is at risk of suffering from a brain haemorrhage which will increase by six to seven per cent year on year.
Willie, 45, added: "They can only give him so much medication and it's still not working, he's basically maxed out on his meds at the moment. If he can't get the surgery, his dreams of becoming a Royal Marine will be blown.
"Everything is on hold and what he had planned for his future has been turned upside down. He's 18 and feels like he's living in limbo and having to plan a different path in life.
"He feels he is living with a ticking time bomb inside his head."
In a desperate attempt to find his son a cure, the dad-of-two located a specialist vascular neurosurgeon in Miami, Florida, who is confident he can remove Jack's AVM with minimal loss to his vision. So far, the medic has performed 880 re-section AVM surgeries.
If the family can raise funds to cover the procedure costs, Jack will be in theatre for 12 hours and will be kept in hospital for one month under supervision.
Willie said: "It is serious surgery, there are always risks and he may lose a bit of his vision but we are positive the surgeon can remove Jack's AVM successfully. I know that £147,000 is a lot to raise, but we must try. He is our son."
Jack added: "It's hard and it has generally been a really scary experience, but I'm confident we will meet the fundraising target."
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