Granddad loses his nose after his face was ravaged by cancer

A self-conscious granddad ‘just wants to fall in love’ after naval cancer left a gaping hole in his face.

Stephen White, 51, from Exeter, has become a recluse since drastic surgery left him without a nose or any top teeth.

The dad-of-three, who has eight grandchildren, said he is living like a ‘vampire’ because he is too ashamed to go out in daylight.

He would like to start dating but says he doesn’t have the confidence because his appearance ‘scares’ people.

The former sales assistant said: ‘I scare my grandchildren and when I go out in the street I scare, not just children, but everybody. People look at me and cross the road to avoid me.

‘The cancer was right in the middle of my face and I’m still waiting for a new nose. If it wasn’t so visible I’d feel like I’d be able to date again. Really all I want is to fall in love.’

Stephen discovered he had nasal cancer four years ago, when he had a cold and noticed his nose was bleeding.

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An MRI scan showed the bone at the end of his nose had been ‘eaten away’ by cancer and was spreading towards the back of his brain.

He has been waiting for a prosthetic nose since 2015 and suffered from impaired vision as he has been unable to wear his glasses.

He said: ‘Before I had laser eye surgery last month, I could not see further than the end of my arm without my glasses. I couldn’t put my glasses on because there was nothing to rest them on.

‘I couldn’t go out because I couldn’t see to cross the road and would be paranoid about bumping into people, as I couldn’t see them until they were a yard in front of me.

‘Then they would look at my face and see I didn’t have a nose. It destroyed my self-confidence and I now have no self-esteem.’

According to the NHS, nasal cancer is very rare. It develops in the nasal cavity behind the nose and most often affects men over 40.

Stephen said doctors had never seen anything like his cancer before and had no choice but to operate on his nose to save his life.

However, he wasn’t expecting to wake up without one when he went in for surgery.

‘They were talking about having to remove my nose altogether and fitting a prosthetic, or cutting into it and replacing the bridge with bone from my rib and skin from my forehead’ he recalled.

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‘But they didn’t really know what they could do until they’d cut it open. I can’t remember how long the operation was but it felt like it took hours.

‘When I woke up, I had no teeth, top palate or nose because they saw the cancer was attacking my palate and gums.

‘And they removed my teeth anticipating that the radiotherapy treatment later on would destroy the enamel and they would rot away. I couldn’t speak because my teeth had gone.’

Stephen said he ‘burst into tears’ when he first looked in the mirror as he feared people would think he was a ‘monster’.‘

He thought his ‘life was over’ and felt depressed as he spent months on a diet of mushy food while going through aggressive radiotherapy treatment to remove the cancer.

He has been going back and forth trying to get a prosthetic nose fitted, and last month had to pay over £3000 for laser eye surgery, as he did not qualify for free treatment on the NHS.

Although this has had a huge improvement on his life, his confidence remains at rock bottom.

He said: ‘I used to go and visit my grandchildren on the train, but I haven’t done that for years because I’m scared to be near all the people.

‘Mums with prams will steer their buggies away from me. I look at people and they will cross the road. It’s soul-destroying.

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‘Now I would just like to find love. I want to find a girlfriend who will love me like I would love her.

‘I think once I have my new nose I will feel more confident to go out and meet someone.

‘I used to go to the pub and see friends, but over the last five years that’s gone down the toilet. I just want to be treated like a decent human being.’

Family members are now trying to raise money via GoFundMe to help Stephen get back on his feet and pay for any remaining work he may need doing, as well as to buy him a car, so he can visit them and have a social life.