inMotion Magazine

November | December 2017 38 by Karen Henry Common Bond Sharing experiences helps hip and hemipelvectomy amputees thrive When you’re 16 years old, have just been named the starting goalie on the varsity lacrosse team and are in line to become the tennis team captain, the last thing you want to hear is that you’ll never walk again. Yet that is exactly what Chandler Balkman and his parents were told after his leg was amputated at the hip as the result of a boating accident in 2006. “A lot of my teenage identity was athletic-based,” Chandler says. “When I lost my leg, it seemed like my world shattered.” Wanting only the best recovery options for their son, the Balkmans turned to the Internet, where they found a hemipelvectomy and hip disarticulation amputee support and information Web site put together by Christina Skoski, MD. Christina was 15 years old when she underwent a hemipelvectomy amputation to stop the spread of fibrosarcoma in 1962. She was fit with her first prosthesis that same year and has been walking with a prosthesis ever since. A Rare Population People with an amputation at the hip or hemipelvectomy level represent about 1 percent of the Health & Well-Being Chandler represents the next generation of hip and hemipelvectomy amputees, using the latest prosthetic technology to maximize their mobility. Photo courtesy of Ottobock