This story is about a young sailor and environmental activist who faced a challenging journey from being a traveler to becoming a cancer survivor with a dual stoma. His journey also includes a significant surgical procedure known as the Indiana pouch conversion. Here’s a look at his experience and some helpful insights:

- While working on a yacht in France, he developed severe constipation. After unsuccessful treatment in Monaco, he returned to Scotland, where he was involved in a car accident that left him with multiple undiagnosed fractures.
- He experienced ongoing bowel obstruction, leading to a colonoscopy that revealed stage III rectal cancer on Christmas Eve in 2004.
- In March 2005, he began radiotherapy and chemotherapy at Raigmore Hospital in Inverness, but the treatments did not shrink the tumor.
- He underwent surgery to remove the rectal stump, bladder, and prostate, resulting in both a colostomy and a urostomy. Post-surgery, he faced complications, including a cardiac arrest due to multiple pain medications.
- Despite early challenges with leakage and emotional struggles, including the loss of his 11-year-old daughter, he gradually resumed travel and social activities. He found support through online ostomy communities.
- Two years later, he decided to convert his ileal-conduit urostomy to a continent catheterizable stoma, known as an Indiana pouch. Pre-operative tests showed no abnormalities.
- On March 18, 2008, he underwent the first procedure in Scotland to transform a pre-existing urostomy into an Indiana pouch. His recovery included five days in a high-dependency unit, managing pain with alternatives to morphine, and learning to care for the pubic catheter.
- He now enjoys a full return to an active lifestyle, with no stoma problems and a strong mental recovery.

Additional insights and advice from the community:

- Forum members admire his resilience and see him as an inspiration for others facing similar challenges with ostomy and cancer.
- Clarifications from members include that the Indiana pouch and Mitrofanoff procedures are related types of continent urinary diversions, with the choice of stoma site varying between the groin and the belly button.
- The surgeon for the Indiana pouch procedure, Mr. Stewart, is a senior urology consultant at Western General Hospital in Edinburgh and is highly regarded in his field.