Tyrone McCullagh left 'shocked' and fearing for his career after brain scan scare

TYRONE McCullagh was left ‘shocked’ and fearing for his boxing career after an unexpected anomaly was detected on a routine brain scan.
Tyrone McCullagh lands a shot on Ryan Walsh who inflicted the Derry southpaw's first professional loss last February.Tyrone McCullagh lands a shot on Ryan Walsh who inflicted the Derry southpaw's first professional loss last February.
Tyrone McCullagh lands a shot on Ryan Walsh who inflicted the Derry southpaw's first professional loss last February.

The Derry southpaw’s pre-fight medical at Kingsbridge Private Hospital in Belfast revealed an abnormality on an initial MRI scan and the British Boxing Board of Control refused to grant him a licence to box until further investigation.

That scuppered his plans to return to the ring last November and after an anxious four month wait, it turned out he has a retinal micro-aneurysm, allaying career-ending fears.

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He was told by his neurosurgeon it didn’t put his health in any immediate danger, a view now accepted by the boxing authorities who gave him the all clear to return to the ring at the weekend.

The scare which left him ‘in limbo’ was just par for the course during a ‘nightmare’ 12 months for McCullagh but the challenges he’s overcome in 2020 have given him a ‘new lease of life’ as he looks to build towards major honours this year.

“It’s just been a nightmare year in boxing all round but especially for me,” he explained. “I had my first defeat in February and then the coronavirus hit us in March and we were locked down with no boxing happening.

“When my next fight was about to materialise I went to get my medicals renewed and there was a problem with that. Kingsbridge Hospital rang me to tell me there was an issue with my medical and they were going to tell the British Board of Control about it.

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“My whole career was up in the air and I didn’t know what was going to happen. I was completely in shock at the time. I was numb and didn’t know what I was going to do.

“It was a long, long wait. They eventually told me it was a micro-aneurysm. Obviously an aneurysm is very different but this one wasn’t in my brain, it was behind my eye and I went to see a specialist about it.

“The neurosurgeon had a risk calculator and said it was a very low risk. It came up at 0.5% risk.

“If I genuinely felt my health was in danger I would stop boxing but after speaking to him and the British Board passed me eventually so I’m happy that I’m not in any danger.

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“You do hear nightmare stories of people taking a bleed and dying, especially in the sport of boxing. But they told me that it had been there last year, It was that small and their advanced testing process makes it more clear now.

“Looking back on last year’s scan it was there as well and it hasn’t got any bigger or worse. It could’ve been there from birth for all I know, it’s just that I have to get these scans done every year is why I know about it. So from the end of October until now I was waiting for the results.”

The former WBO European superbantamweight champion was even contemplating a career change.

“I didn’t know what else to do, whether to start looking for another job. But what was the point looking for a job when I might have to leave it if I got the all clear to box again.

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“So I was in limbo while I was waiting to hear. Thankfully I got good news this week.”

He’s hoping to make up for lost time now and get back in the ring for a tune-up fight as soon as possible and he returned to training in Dublin on Monday.

“It was a disastrous year and that was my worry that if people looked at my record they would think ‘he’s jacked it in after his first defeat and didn’t want to know, he couldn’t handle it’. That’s not the case. I’m itching to get back in there but I’m sure that’s what people were thinking. I didn’t want to pack it in because of a brain scan.

“I want it to be on my own terms when I eventually do pack it in.

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“It’s a bit of a new lease of life for me. You just take it for granted that you’re going to fly through your medical every time. Hopefully now it won’t be long until I’m back out there.

“There’s nothing handy in boxing but I do think I’ll need a six rounder or eight rounder to get me going and get the rust off and then back into big fights.

“I have a point to prove now and I want to show I have a bit of fight left in me yet. I just need a bit of luck. Two or three wins under my belt and I’ll be right back in the mix and hopefully fighting for major belts.”

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