45-year-old Malcolm MacDonald who lost his penis to a horrific blood infection has become the first man in the world to have a new one built on his arm.
Malcolm reportedly had an infection in his perineum which is also known as the “gooch” or “grundle” and it turned into sepsis. Recounting how “completely gutted” he was when his penis fell off due to the infection, the father of two told The Sun;
“Because I’d been through the devastation of knowing I was going to lose it, I just picked it up and put it in the bin. I went to the hospital and they said the best they could do for me was to roll the remaining stump up like a little sausage roll. It was heartbreaking.”
The father of two turned to alcohol, feeling like “a shadow of a man” for the two years after losing his penis, until his GP referred him to Professor David Ralph, a phallus construction expert at University College Hospital London (UCHL).
He added;
“For two years after losing my penis I felt a shadow of a man.
“My life really fell apart because I had no self-confidence.
“I drank too much. I didn’t see family and friends – I just didn’t want to have to face up to it.”
The mechanic who is now desperate for his £50,000 NHS-funded appendage which he has nicknamed “Jimmy” in which the penis will be finally transferred to where it should be, further said;
“Of course it is mad – having a penis on your arm.
“Not even I am used to it. But when you think about it, it’s actually amazing.
“That they can make me a new penis at all is incredible – but that they can build it on my arm is mind-blowing.
“It looks like something out of a weird sci-fi comic. But it’s my chance at a normal life.
“It’s been the first step towards being able to go to the toilet and even being intimate with someone.”
Surgeons formed a new manhood — with its own blood vessels and nerves – using a skin flap on the left arm of the right-handed man. They created a urethra and installed two tubes inflated with a hand-pump, allowing him to achieve an erection.
The shaft was then removed from his forearm, leaving the base, allowing it to form naturally as skin and tissue. He now awaits for it to be finally transferred to its proper location.
Prof Ralph famously created a “bionic penis” for Andrew Wardle, who was born without one. Excited Malcolm was given a referral and recalled: “It gave me a glimmer of hope that I could go back to being a normal bloke.”
Prof Ralph explained the arm-graft procedure, and told him it would take up to two years, which Malcolm was happy with. He was then delighted to get funding, as it was motivated by being able to go to the toilet properly rather than for sexual reasons.
Malcolm said;
“It was all my Christmases at once. I was so emotional because it was a chance at a new start.
“I wasn’t worried about the procedure because I had seen what Prof Ralph and his team could do.
“As far as I was concerned, they were miracle workers and I was up for anything that could give me my willy back.
“Not having a penis felt awful. It’s most men’s worst fear. For me I was never worried about sex, because I already had two children.
“It was always more about my self-confidence and simple things like using the loo.”
The father of two has however missed the scheduled operation due to illness, and the surgery kept being pushed back for other reasons. A UCHL spokesperson told The Sun that MacDonald had missed or cancelled a number of appointments to complete the procedure pre-lockdown.
The spokesperson said;
“We will try to rearrange his surgery as soon we are able, now that services are gradually returning closer to normal following lockdown. The delays have been hard to deal with.”
Malcolm disclosed that despite wearing long-sleeved shirts to hide his “bulge,” people have sometimes spotted the misplaced member.
He said;
“People ask me about it when they see me in the pub, and of course people make jokes. But I get it. It’s not every day you see a man with a penis on his arm. Of course I see the funny side. I have to. I don’t have any other option.
“If I couldn’t laugh at the willy on my arm I’d be finished.”
Malcolm hopes to have it finally grafted properly between his legs by the end of the year. He told the publication;
“The delays have been hard to deal with. For one reason and another the final operation has never happened.
“There have been scheduling mix-ups and transport issues getting me to London. I was in my surgical gowns once about to go into the theatre when they said there was a shortage of medical staff.
“Then they cancelled again because of the coronavirus. It feels like I’m cursed sometimes.
“It really feels like it is time to get it off. I can’t run because it waggles about. I can’t go swimming or wear a short-sleeve shirt.
“I can’t lie, having a penis on your arm for four years is a really strange thing to live with.
“But I am determined this penis will be ultimately used for what it was built for.”
