I will never be able to have children after doctors inserted hernia mesh in my groin and I went through hell with complications and infections. I could barely walk some days.

I had to have a testicle removed and live with chronic pain. Seven surgeries later I’m disabled and in constant pain. Hernia mesh sliced my spermatic cord.

In 2014 I was working on the docks and suffered a groin injury lifting a box at work which caused a hernia. I was referred to hospital and the surgeon recommended a mesh implant to repair the area but I was not warned of possible long-term side effects or health implications. There was no information on the mesh or the fact it could move, fold, crack or cause autoimmune diseases.

I had the mesh removed eight years later in 2021 but am now disabled and unable to work. I have to regularly attend hospital for pain relief infusions to combat spasticity groin issues.

Globally there are more men who undergo hernia mesh operations than women and some men are left in chronic pain, unable to have children, with erectile dysfunction and unable to work. The mesh can attach to the spermatic cord, causing pain and stopping the testicle from functioning normally. Yet men’s voices are being ignored on hernia mesh issues.

Martin, from Jersey, UK, is a member of The Scottish Global Mesh Alliance support group