Health3 min(s) read
Published 12:52 19 May 2026 GMT
A British mechanic lost his penis following a nasty case of sepsis, with medical professionals successfully constructing a replacement out of his own tissue.
For years, his new manhood wasn't actually in its natural position - it was on his left forearm.
Malcolm MacDonald, 45, was suffering from a perineum infection, which progressed to a severe case of sepsis in 2014, resulting in his fingers and toes turning black.
This then spread to affect his genitalia, telling the Sun in 2020: "When I saw my penis go black I was beside myself,
"It was like a horror film... I knew deep down it was gone, and I was going to lose it. Then one day it just dropped off onto the floor."
Malcolm spent six years with the penis on his forearm before finally getting it transferred to its rightful home.
A Channel 4 documentary also covered how he struggled with the condition, and how he wasn't alone.
The Brit got an abscess on his bottom and popped it, resulting in blood poisoning, before his penis turned black and "fell off".
Luckily, a six-inch penis was grafted by doctors, which was meant to be attached in 2015.
However, there was a lack of oxygen in Malcolm's blood, meaning that the member had to be attached to his arm instead.
And then there were the delays, which weren't helped by the coronavirus pandemic, but finally, in 2022, he underwent a nine-hour operation to move his penis back.
Speaking on Channel 4, he admitted: "It was a nine-hour op. The first thing I did was look down and I was like, 'Oh my days. They got it this time'.
"I feel like a real man again."
The penis was designed and made by Professor David Ralph at London's University College Hospital, which used flesh from the mechanic's arm.
According to Professor Ralph, time permitting, Malcolm will be able to use the penis for sex, thanks to the use of a small pump in the scrotum that fills it with a saline solution.
"This could be a turning point in my life," Malcolm admitted.
He added: "My luck in life hasn’t been too good so far, but it can only go bad for so long, can’t it?
"Can you imagine six years of your life with a penis swinging on your arm? It’s been a nightmare, but it’s gone now — the little bugger."
For years after the penis was attached to his arm, the mechanic said that his life "fell apart," with penile reconstruction specialist Professor Ralph helping to save him.
The medical expert's team removed a section of skin, blood vessels and nerves from his left arm to make a replacement phallus.
Surgery was needed to create a urethra, while two tubes and a pump were inserted, which would allow the new penis to achieve "mechanical" erections.
It was placed on Malcolm's arm to allow more skin and tissue to grow while dangling.
The successful surgery did finally take place four years ago, though it was scheduled to happen four years prior, which left the mechanic in no man's land.
