A mother waited more than two years to be diagnosed with motor neuron disease (MND) after doctors initially mistook the condition for a side effect of the Covid vaccine.
Anna Barrow, from Greater Manchester, started losing feeling in her left arm and hand just weeks after receiving her third Covid shot in March 2021.
But the 38-year-old was reportedly told by her GP that she likely suffered nerve damage from the jab being injected too high into her arm.
Trafford Council social worker was advised that it should improve in the next 18 months.
However, Mrs. Barrow’s symptoms gradually worsened and the loss of sensation spread throughout her body.
Anna Barrow from Eccles in Greater Manchester started to lose feeling in her left arm and hand just weeks after receiving her third Covid vaccine in March 2021. But the 38-year-old was told by her GP that she likely had nerve damage from injecting the jab too high into her arm, she claimed
Earlier this year, Ms Barrow was urgently referred to the neurology department but was told there was a 71-week waiting list. But during a work meeting in May, she realized she was having trouble breathing and swallowing. Pictured is Mrs Barrow (far right) with her husband Martyn (second left) and three daughters Fallon, 13 (far left) and Tilly, 18, and Eve, 15 (center and second right)
Earlier this year, she was urgently referred to a neurology department, but was told there was a 71-week waiting list.
But at a work meeting in May, Ms. Barrow realized she was having trouble breathing and swallowing.
After going to the ER, she had to stay in the hospital for two weeks, where she underwent further tests and was eventually diagnosed with ALS.
Mrs Barrow said, ‘It was really hard. They had kept me in the hospital and were running lots of tests, so we knew it might not be good news.
“I was a social worker, so I’ve worked with a few people with ALS, but when they were younger they were all men.”
She added, “I knew it was a possibility, but with my age and being a woman, I just didn’t think it would be.”
MND is a rare condition that gradually damages parts of the nervous system.
It causes the degeneration of nerves and brain cells, leading to weakness and muscle wasting.
Patients also have difficulty walking, talking, using their arms and hands, eating and breathing.
Over time, it can lead to paralysis and eventually death, although some can live with it for decades. Marie Curie UK says that ‘a person with MND will usually die two to three years after diagnosis’.
It can take years to be diagnosed because there is no single test, forcing doctors to rule out a whole host of other illnesses.
About 5,000 people in the UK and 30,000 in the US have MND.
It’s not clear what causes the condition. But it’s thought to be related to the buildup of TDP-43 proteins in the brain that clump together.
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is the most common form of MND. Sir Stephen Hawking lived with the crippling disease for decades.
Ms Barrow said: ‘We think only 5,000 people in the UK have it and I’ve been told I’m the youngest woman with it in the area.
?We went to a chapter meeting of the MND association and sat down with a family whose uncle had recently been diagnosed.
?Then people came along and asked who in my family was affected and I had to say it was me.
?At my first hospital consultation, one of the nurses came out and wandered the waiting room looking for me. She was clearly looking for an older person.’
Ms Barrow, who has three daughters – Tilly, 18, Eve, 15 and Fallon, 13 – with her husband Martyn, 39, said the hardest part was breaking the news to their children.
MND is a rare condition that gradually damages parts of the nervous system. It causes the degeneration of nerves and brain cells, leading to weakness and muscle wasting
Mr Barrow added: ‘The first thing we thought about was the children and we decided to pull the cast off when we got home.
?You have good days and bad days now and it’s not something you can deal with and then move on from.
“We know it’s here now and it’s something we deal with every day.”
He added: ?We said we would handle it the way we always handle things ? with humor and positivity.
?The doctor told Anna to live her life and make memories.
?We’ve got a week’s vacation planned for August and we’re trying to make plans to take the girls to Disney.
“It’s something Anna has always wanted to do with the kids and now we have to get it done.”