My Daniel’s suffering so much, it breaks my heart

A TEENAGER is ‘living in agony’ after a major operation to remove his large bowel was cancelled at the last minute.

Daniel Dunne, 15, has been an inpatient at the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital and suffers with disuse ulcerative colitis.

Daniel’s mum, Michelle, says his operation was cancelled shortly before he was due to go to theatre because he had caught flu on the ward.

She claims that her son’s discomfort and pain is being prolonged due to poor communication between consultants and surgeons.

She said her son, who had been in hospital for seven weeks before Christmas, is passing blood and struggling with his mental health.

Michelle said: “We’ve been in this cycle of being in and out of hospital since August.

“Daniel’s latest stint in hospital was seven weeks. We were desperate for the operation to go ahead.

“We were told surgery was the best option but they’d need a surgeon from the MRI.

“In the meantime he’s been passing blood every day and living in pain.

“We were all set for it to go ahead on December 16 but then at the last minute they turned round and said it couldn’t go ahead because he’d had the flu.

“Daniel has highfunctioning autism. He likes routine and he likes to know what’s going on.

“They said it was too risky for it to go ahead and I appreciate that.

“It’s just that the surgery is a solution to his problem and it’s been delayed for months now.

“I can’t fault the nurses on the ward. It’s the lack of communication between consultants, senior managers and surgeons that makes it so frustrating.”

The family say they have been told Daniel will have to wait until January 13 for his operation.

Michelle, from Preston, said: “I don’t think it should have to be like this.

“Daniel’s Christmas was ruined. He’s housebound, he can hardly walk and he’s in pain.

“He’s suffering so much, it breaks my heart. We just want his large bowel removed so he can get his life back.

“He’s a shadow of himself at the moment.”

A spokesman at the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, part of Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, said: “We are really sorry that we were unable to go ahead with Daniel’s surgery and apologise for the frustration this has caused for Daniel and his family.

“The safety of the children is our priority and we are looking to reschedule the surgery.”