Lawton Man Wants Leg Amputated

Associated Press

LAWTON, OK -- A rare blood disorder does not allow Scott Foster's body to heal from simple cuts and sores.

Now, a festering leg wound has left the 38-year-old Lawton man so debilitated and in so much pain that he wants to have the limb amputated.

He wants a prosthetic leg in the hopes of rebuilding his independence, but doctors won't take off his right leg.

"They say I'm too young and as long as there's a pulse in my foot, they won't," he said. "They're into saving limbs, not getting rid of them."

His stride has been reduced to a hobble and he can no longer do things he once enjoyed, like dancing and biking.

A former business owner, Foster can't work and relies on Social Security and his parents for financial assistance. He moved in with his parents in Lawton about three years ago and passes the days with television and crosswords.

"I want to be able to work again and live on my own," Foster said. "This isn't just about my leg -- it's about my spirit, too."

He's undergone vein procedures, hyperbaric oxygen therapy, repeated surgeries to dissolve blood clots in his leg and more than a dozen skin grafts.

"I've had some of the best medical care available to man, but I don't feel my leg is ever going to fully heal," Foster said.

He has an appointment May 1 with a Dallas specialist.

"My doctor says there is a possibility it might work," Foster said. "And there is a possibility that if my leg is amputated, the stump won't heal."

Linda Foster said her son's blood disorder is a genetic disease he inherited through her family. Her father and other relatives have suffered from it and ultimately had legs amputated to improve their quality of life.

"If he were a dog or horse or any other animal, they would show compassion and amputate his leg," Linda Foster said.