Ryan Reynolds stepped in to aid a Wrexham player’s wife, who had been given months to live, find a mistaken diagnosis.
Wrexham midfielder Anthony Forde and his partner Laura Mangan had their life turned upside down in February 2023, just days after the birth of their son Paddy.
Laura’s left arm seized up at home, so she went for a standard MRI scan, which was also designed to assist her figure out why she was having trouble conceiving.
Soon later, she was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. In reality, a neurosurgeon told Laura she only had a few months or years to live after determining the tumor was cancerous.
Speaking more about the situation on a recent episode of the Talking Transitions podcast, Forde said: “We were trying to be as positive as we could until we spoke to the neurosurgeon but then we got the worst news possible.”
A few days later, Wrexham co-owner Ryan Reynolds called them on Facetime from the US. He wanted Laura to get a second opinion from one of the leading neurosurgeons in New York.
Amazingly, the second neurosurgeon was more optimistic and following a biopsy, the couple were relieved to find out that the tumour was benign.
The NHS website states that a benign (non-cancerous) brain tumour is a mass of cells that grows relatively slowly in the brain. Non-cancerous brain tumours tend to stay in one place and do not spread.
Forde conveyed his gratitude to the club’s owners during a recent podcast interview. “I just don’t think I’d have got that help anywhere else,” he went on to say. “They were amazing.”
He continued: “They’re genuinely good people who have a good heart and me and my family and friends will always be so grateful.”
Laura also spoke with The Sunday Times about her experience, describing it as “a rollercoaster” of emotions and admitting that she was still sensitive after the second diagnosis.
“I had just been through the worst seven weeks imaginable with my newborn baby,” she went on to say.
“I had PTSD as a result. I’m going to counselling. I’m not ashamed to say so.
“No lie, I was planning my funeral while doing the night feeds. I was crying silently. It was a very low point. “A living nightmare.”
Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney continue to make an impact for Wrexham, both on and off the pitch.
Leave a Reply