North Melbourne Kangaroos forward Paul Curtis has bravely detailed a harrowing off-season health scare that turned a European holiday into a fight for his life, culminating in emergency surgery in Perth.
European Holiday Turns Into Medical Nightmare
The 22-year-old AFL player and father fell seriously ill with pneumonia while travelling with teammates in Europe. His situation became critical after he suffered a severe adverse reaction to antibiotics prescribed during a long-haul flight from London to Indonesia.
Curtis was turned away from a London hospital after reporting he felt like he was suffocating, only to return the following day. He waited eight hours to be seen. "I went up to the front desk and I said 'guys I can't breathe'," Curtis told 7NEWS in an exclusive interview. After a brief ten-minute consultation, he was discharged with stronger medication.
Shockingly, medical staff then cleared him to board a 17-hour flight to Bali, a decision later condemned by Perth specialists.
Rushed to Perth for Life-Saving Operation
In Bali, Curtis's condition deteriorated dramatically. He developed extreme swelling in his face and feet, which left him unable to walk, and broke out in a full-body rash. He was eventually diagnosed with an empyema – a dangerous and potentially deadly build-up of infected fluid around the lungs.
Recognising the urgency, he was medi-vacced to Perth, the nearest major Australian city. Upon landing, he was rushed directly from the tarmac to Hollywood Hospital in Nedlands for immediate surgery.
Infectious disease specialist Dr Clay Golledge did not mince words about the prior care. "He was then told he was OK to get on a plane and fly to Bali with oral antibiotics and that was reprehensible in my opinion," Dr Golledge stated. "The level of care he was given at this hospital was incredibly sub-standard."
Remarkable Recovery and Return to Football
The surgery successfully removed a litre of pus from around Curtis's lungs. He spent eight further days in hospital recovering. The ordeal left him visibly gaunt. "You could see all the bones in my cheeks," he recalled, and he was initially so weak he couldn't walk more than 50 metres without resting.
Despite the severity of the illness, which Dr Golledge described as "a serious, life-threatening illness and he could have died from this," Curtis has made a stunning recovery. He has already returned to training with his North Melbourne teammates and remains in contention to play in the Kangaroos' season opener against Port Adelaide on March 15.
Throughout the ordeal, his focus was on his three-year-old son, Elijah. "I knew I had to be healthy first to obviously provide for him," Curtis said. The experience has given him a new perspective. "It's given me a good perspective on life I guess and how quickly things can change... I'm just so grateful for the people that helped me to get back to where I am now."
