Silfan’s debt after urgent surgery
Donation protected
OUR DEAR SILFAN NEEDS AN URGENT OPERATION!
On a trip to the USA this year, Silfan was admitted to hospital with excruciating abdominal pain. He was diagnosed with a dangerous condition called 'mid-gut volvulus' due to malrotated bowels. The scans showed that he was very close to losing his small intestine because its blood supply was restricted. Silfan was scheduled for emergency surgery to attempt to save his bowel. Without a bowel, one can only receive nutrition via IV and can no longer digest food. Fortunately, the volvulus spontaneously released at the last minute, restoring the blood supply and eliminating the need for surgery in that moment.
After this episode, both his surgeons warned Silfan of the seriousness of his condition, stating that this could happen again at any moment, and without surgical intervention Silfan could very well lose his small intestines entirely. They have urged him to have surgery as soon as possible, emphasising that it is not safe for him to fly home to the UK without having this operation.
SINCE LEAVING HOSPITAL
Silfan is currently only eating soluble/pureed food, and even so has multiple times recognised the beginnings of the distinct pain associated with bowel obstruction. Each time, in order to reduce the chances of it progressing to an emergency, Silfan stops eating for the day, causing him to lose weight ongoingly. Every meal has the danger of causing a relapse, which has already occured again since, leading to an additional trip to ER.
UNFORTUNATELY...
Despite the assessments of four senior surgeons stating that Silfan needs this surgery urgently and warning of the prohibitive danger of flying home without it, his travel insurance company refute this and therefore have withheld coverage.
Silfan has missed previously scheduled surgery dates due to not managing to get insurance approval.
SUPPORT FOR SILFAN
It is a requirement for this surgery to have at least one person to accompany the patient during the initial consultation, the surgery itself, and throughout the 6-8 week recovery period. So Chris, a close friend of Silfan’s, has travelled to accompany and support him during his surgery and throughout his recovery. Thank you Chris!
THE COSTS
Surgery - £188,000
Other expenses - £16,000
(6-8 week recovery, 6-8 weeks of living expenses for both Silfan and Chris, flights)
TOTAL - £204,000
£8000 - Donated direct to Silfans bank account brining the total to £196,000 (update May 1)
We are so happy to say that Silfan will definitely be going ahead with his surgery as the needed funds have been gathered through a mixture of loans and all of your generous contributions. The support that you are all providing through this crowdfunder is deeply appreciated and will be immensely helpful to Silfan in repaying these significant loans post recovery.
Thank you all so much!
HOW YOU CAN HELP
1. Make a contribution
2. Share this crowdfunder with others. Every share is worth £10!
3. Organise a fundraising event. Have a potluck meal and invite all your friends over inviting them to offer a donation to support Silfan. Or get in touch with us for more ideas and support.
GoFundMe only accepts credit/debit cards. If you would like to contribute using PayPal or direct transfer you are welcome to contact us directly for these details. We will adjust the total needed every few days in accordance with the PayPal contributions that are recieved.
All contributions recieved will go straight into Silfan’s bank account.
Thank you so much for your very generous and loving support of Silfan during this challenging time. I am a good friend of Silfan’s and am in close touch with him and Chris. We will send you updates along the way ❤️



On a trip to the USA this year, Silfan was admitted to hospital with excruciating abdominal pain. He was diagnosed with a dangerous condition called 'mid-gut volvulus' due to malrotated bowels. The scans showed that he was very close to losing his small intestine because its blood supply was restricted. Silfan was scheduled for emergency surgery to attempt to save his bowel. Without a bowel, one can only receive nutrition via IV and can no longer digest food. Fortunately, the volvulus spontaneously released at the last minute, restoring the blood supply and eliminating the need for surgery in that moment.
After this episode, both his surgeons warned Silfan of the seriousness of his condition, stating that this could happen again at any moment, and without surgical intervention Silfan could very well lose his small intestines entirely. They have urged him to have surgery as soon as possible, emphasising that it is not safe for him to fly home to the UK without having this operation.
SINCE LEAVING HOSPITAL
Silfan is currently only eating soluble/pureed food, and even so has multiple times recognised the beginnings of the distinct pain associated with bowel obstruction. Each time, in order to reduce the chances of it progressing to an emergency, Silfan stops eating for the day, causing him to lose weight ongoingly. Every meal has the danger of causing a relapse, which has already occured again since, leading to an additional trip to ER.
UNFORTUNATELY...
Despite the assessments of four senior surgeons stating that Silfan needs this surgery urgently and warning of the prohibitive danger of flying home without it, his travel insurance company refute this and therefore have withheld coverage.
Silfan has missed previously scheduled surgery dates due to not managing to get insurance approval.
SUPPORT FOR SILFAN
It is a requirement for this surgery to have at least one person to accompany the patient during the initial consultation, the surgery itself, and throughout the 6-8 week recovery period. So Chris, a close friend of Silfan’s, has travelled to accompany and support him during his surgery and throughout his recovery. Thank you Chris!
THE COSTS
Surgery - £188,000
Other expenses - £16,000
(6-8 week recovery, 6-8 weeks of living expenses for both Silfan and Chris, flights)
TOTAL - £204,000
£8000 - Donated direct to Silfans bank account brining the total to £196,000 (update May 1)
We are so happy to say that Silfan will definitely be going ahead with his surgery as the needed funds have been gathered through a mixture of loans and all of your generous contributions. The support that you are all providing through this crowdfunder is deeply appreciated and will be immensely helpful to Silfan in repaying these significant loans post recovery.
Thank you all so much!
HOW YOU CAN HELP
1. Make a contribution
2. Share this crowdfunder with others. Every share is worth £10!
3. Organise a fundraising event. Have a potluck meal and invite all your friends over inviting them to offer a donation to support Silfan. Or get in touch with us for more ideas and support.
GoFundMe only accepts credit/debit cards. If you would like to contribute using PayPal or direct transfer you are welcome to contact us directly for these details. We will adjust the total needed every few days in accordance with the PayPal contributions that are recieved.
All contributions recieved will go straight into Silfan’s bank account.
Thank you so much for your very generous and loving support of Silfan during this challenging time. I am a good friend of Silfan’s and am in close touch with him and Chris. We will send you updates along the way ❤️
Organizer and beneficiary
Romy Norich
Organizer
Silfan Rhys-Jones
Beneficiary
