‘Failed surgery has left me unable to eat any solid food’

Rob Lindsell has lost almost two stone in the last six months as he survives on a liquid diet, he tells Rebecca Whittaker

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A man who has spent years unable to eat solid food following an unsuccessful operation on his ribs more than a decade ago hopes an operation will help him regain a “sense of normality”.

Rob Lindsell, 37, went under the knife in July 2010 for a condition called pectus excavatum, which causes the breastbone to press inwards and create a dip between the ribs.

Mr Lindsell, a coffee shop owner from Bournemouth, said the condition restricted his everyday life, affecting his heart and lungs, causing breathlessness and chest pain. But the operation that was meant to help him live more comfortably, instead left him unable to eat big meals and eventually struggle to keep any solid food down.

"I am having a lot of issues whereby food just isn't staying down; I have insane acid reflux. I wake up in the night and literally choke on my stomach acid," he told TheIndependent.

However, Mr Lindsell claims the NHS is not offering him the surgery he needs, leaving him with no other option but to launch a fundraiser to help pay the private medical costs.

"Every day is a struggle, both physically and emotionally. I just want a chance to live with some sense of normality again," he said. "It's exhausting. I can't go out for meals with friends or family. I can't gain weight. I can't date or build the kind of life I thought I would have by now."