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A father who had a third of his skull removed following a serious stroke has had it reconstructed with a ceramic plate in a pioneering operation.
Marc Morris, 59, underwent drastic surgery to stop his brain stem from protruding from the base of his skull after it collapsed.
The father-of-three was found unconscious in front of his computer by his wife Jayne, 59, at their home in Craven Arms, Shropshire, last September.
The telecommunications worker had complained of headaches earlier in the day, but blamed it on a migraine or Covid.
A few days after his stroke, doctors became concerned about swelling in his brain and so cut out pieces of his skull to relieve the pressure.
Marc Morris, 59 (pictured, before his stroke) was found unconscious at his computer by his wife Jayne last September at their home in Craven Arms, Shropshire.
The father-of-three had a third of his skull removed, before undergoing a pioneering operation to reconstruct it with a ceramic plate.
He underwent drastic surgery to prevent his brain stem from protruding from the base of his skull.
Skilled medical professionals at the Royal Stoke Hospital successfully reconstructed his head using a high-tech ceramic plate to fuse his skin together.
After being rushed to hospital, Mr Morris was told he would need life-saving surgery to remove around a third of his skull.
Mr Morris was left wheelchair-bound and suffered seizures after spending almost seven months recovering in hospital.
Mr Morris spent almost seven months in hospital recovering, but was left wheelchair-bound and suffered seizures.
In June, doctors at Royal Stoke University Hospital reconstructed the shape of his head in a six-hour operation using a high-tech ceramic plate to allow the skin to fuse together.
Recalling the days before his stroke, Marc said: “I was very active, I was very fit. The week before I was mountain biking in Wales.
“I was working here from home and on my laptop, I just felt weird. I had Covid for four days. The same day, I had a migraine. I thought it was Covid.
His wife Jayne said: “Marc didn’t realize he was having a stroke. I called him at noon and he told me he was suffering from a migraine.
“I checked on him later after not hearing from him and it was obvious he was having a stroke.”
“The ambulance took him to the local hospital.
“He was there for three and a half days and they told me he needed life-saving surgery to remove about a third of his skull.
“They told me that without surgery he would definitely die, his brain stem would sink.
“I asked if Marc would survive the operation, they said ‘we will do our best’, which is code for ‘we don’t know’.
“He was giving assisted breathing. They took him to Royal Stoke Hospital.
“The surgeon called me and said he was ready and waiting in the operating theatre.
“We were all in absolute shock. Every phone call we received was Marc right
worsen or worsen.
“As we traveled as a family to Stoke, we didn’t know if he was alive.”
Despite suffering a massive seizure days after the operation, Mr Morris pulled through and was transferred to a community hospital closer to home.
The father-of-three in Cardiff on his first break since the operation
Mr Morris speaking on local BBC radio. The surgery also affected his eyesight, and he now only sees the right side of his vision.
Before his sudden stroke, Mr Morris was fit and active and mountain biking in Wales.
Mr Morris’s family are trying to raise £18,000 to buy him a specialist wheelchair to use outdoors with limited vibration.
In March this year he was finally deemed fit enough to return home while awaiting further surgery to reconstruct his skull.
Jayne added: “By the time Marc got home he was able to sit up but needed help with everything.
“The stroke affected Marc’s eyesight. All the things he loved to do like read a book and use his phone.
“His vision does not register the left side of his visual field. Marc only sees the right side of his vision.
Mr Morris added: “My brain didn’t recognize my leg.
“One of the difficulties was that because my brain was not properly supported, any changes
pressure or vibration made me nauseous. I had a constant headache.
“It was a real shock, I came home and was trapped in my wheelchair. I had brief depressive thoughts.
The damage to Mr Morris’s brain means he feels vibrations keenly, making it very difficult to use an indoor wheelchair outside.
His family are now trying to raise around £18,000 to buy a specialist wheelchair for Marc to use outdoors with limited vibration.
Marc said: “It will help and it means I won’t be stuck in my house anymore.
“This will allow me to go out to the countryside because where we live is quite remote.