The parents of a six-year-old Montrose boy have decided to risk his life in an operation that could let him walk for the first time.
Riley Murray, who has cerebral palsy, wants to be able to walk and run just like his friends at Lochside Primary School.
The Missouri doctor who got Perthshire three-year-old Jack McNaughton standing has just agreed to perform the operation on Riley.
However, Riley will need to be anaesthetised, a procedure that led to the death of his twin brother Brodie at 11 weeks old after a hernia operation.
Riley’s parents admit they are “terrified,” but want the chance to give their son a better life.
Yesterday, his mum Trudy said the family is launching a fund-raising campaign to get her son to the St Louis Children’s Hospital for the operation.
Dr T. S. Park, who did the dorsal rhizotomy on Jack, has seen a video of Riley, as well as X-rays and medical records.
“He believes he can cut the nerves in Riley’s spine causing his spasticity,” said Trudy.
“We have been told Riley will at least be able to walk with a walker, there is a very high potential of him being able to walk with crutches, and they would not rule out the possibility of him walking independently in a protected environment.”Go aheadA letter from the American hospital accepting Riley for surgery arrived at the Murrays’ home on Monday and they have taken a couple of days to consider it and decide to go ahead.
Trudy said, “This might mean he can be independent when he is older, but it is so terrifying for us.”
The operation has been simplified to a level that Riley can understand what is happening.
She added, “I said it was called SDR and what it means is that a doctor in America thinks he can take the stiffness out of his legs.
“A lot of children ask him why he can’t walk and he tells them it’s because his legs are stiff.”
Trudy and husband Dale reckon they will need to raise £55,000 to cover all costs.
They expect to be in the US for about a month to allow Riley to recover and have post-op physiotherapy.
It took the McNaughton family five months to raise the funds they needed to take Jack to Missouri.
“When I was tucking Riley in to bed last night, he asked if he could go for his operation tomorrow,” said Trudy.
“I said it wouldn’t be until he was seven. He said, ‘I want to be able to walk when I’m six’.”
Anyone who would like to contribute to the Murrays can do so by emailing rileysfirststeps@hotmail.co.uk.