Rugby League legend Rob Burrow, who suffers from motor neurone disease, has passed his two-year life expectancy following his diagnosis in 2019 – and he vows to keep fighting until his last breath
Rugby League legend Rob Burrow says he has too many reasons to keep fighting on after defying his life expectancy.
The dad-of-three features in an intimate documentary about how he and his family deal with motor neurone disease.
Rob, 40, was diagnosed in December 2019 and has passed his two-year life expectancy.
In the film he promises not to give in until his last breath.
His wife Lindsey is seen caring for him as she juggles looking after their three children Macy, 10, Maya, 7, and Jackson, 3.
The physio, who is helped by Rob’s parents Geoff and Irene with his 24-hour needs, is also shown carrying him to bed and in a pool.
Rob says: “I’m a prisoner in my own body. I think like you but my mind doesn’t work right. I can’t move my body.”
The film proves he still has his joyful side as he uses his voicebox to tell his mum “she has a gob on her” and he beams as he watches his children at their school sports day.
MND affects 5,000 people in the UK but some can live for decades such as the late Prof Stephen Hawking, 76. It causes the nerves that take signals from the brain to the muscles to stop working, leading to fatal paralysis.
Rugby players Doddie Weir and Ed Slater have also been retired by the illness.
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BBC Breakfast presenter Sally Nugent says: “This film shares the brutal reality of living with motor neurone disease.”
Rob’s former Leeds Rhinos teammate Kevin Sinfield, who has raised £5million for MND, is also in the documentary.
He will run seven ultra marathons in a week during this autumn’s Rugby League World Cup.
Rob Burrow: Living with MND is on BBC Two at 7pm on October 18.
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