A teenager who lost his leg to cancer hopes to play football again after having his foot reattached backwards in groundbreaking surgery.
Tristin Stewart, 15, was diagnosed with an aggressive form of soft tissue cancer known as synovial sarcoma in his right leg last June.
He needed an above the knee amputation in order to survive but this would leave him with functioning difficulties if he wore a prosthetic.
Tristin Stewart, 15, had his right leg amputated after he was diagnosed with an aggressive form of soft tissue cancer known as synovial sarcoma last June
So doctors opted for a rotationplasty – a revolutionary operation that involved his foot being amputated, his shin and knee removed, and his foot rotated and reattached.
Tristan, from County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, was offered revolutionary surgery
This allowed surgeons to recreate a knee joint using his foot to enable the footy mad teen to continue with his favourite sport.
Tristin, from County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, now has a prosthetic that attaches to his foot-knee and has recently relearnt to walk.
‘I didn’t care what my leg would look like, all I knew was that I wanted to run again and I know I will,’ he told The Mirror.
Tristin’s mother, Mandy, 32, said: ‘Tristin was so brave throughout the whole process, until he was told that he’d have to have an amputation.
‘The thought of not being able to play football or do any sport destroyed him – he’s always been an active boy.
‘When we first saw his foot-knee it was a very shocking – but we’re all used to it now.
‘He loves sport so much that he’s now hoping to one day become a Paralympian and he’s currently focusing on trying to run with his prosthetic.’
Surgeons recreated a knee joint using his foot which may allow footy mad teen to one day play again
Tristin’s cancer journey first began in March 2014 when he started suffering from crippling pain in his right leg – but doctors disregarded it as growing pains as he was only 12-years-old.
However the pain persisted for two years and in February 2017 he had a lump removed from his leg which was later identified as a cancerous tumour.
Mandy said: ‘When we found a lump near Tristin’s knee his dad, Shane, 33, took him straight to the doctors and an MRI scan revealed he had a cyst.
‘We were told that it’s likely the cyst wouldn’t cause any harm to Tristin, but he wanted to have it removed anyway so in February he did.
‘However ten days later he was called back to hospital, and this is when we were told that the cyst was a tumour – and it was cancer.
Tristin began to suffer crippling pain in his right leg in March 2014
The pain persisted for two years and in February 2017 he had a lump removed from his leg which was later identified as a cancerous tumour
Tristin, however, remains determined, saying: ‘I didn’t care what my leg would look like, all I knew was that I wanted to run again and I know I will’
Since his operation, Tristin has been learning to walk again with his prosthetic attachment
‘We were then given two options – they could undergo a full amputation of Tristin’s right leg, or a rotationplasty.
‘On June 7 2017 Tristin then had his operation, and we were told it was the first of its kind to happen in Northern Ireland.
‘When went in to see him after the operation you could see under the covers that his leg was gone, and Shane and I were nervous to see what underneath..
‘It was a very strange sight and it was something almost supernatural to see – but it saved my boy so that’s all that matters!’
Since his operation, Tristin has been learning to walk again with his prosthetic attachment and is now focusing on learning to run again.
Tristin and his family are now raising money for a prosthetic that will allow him to run again, to donate visit their gofundme.com page.