Australian native Tyrone Bowd is currently suffering from an inverted penis and scrotal lymphedema, which has caused his scrotum to reach the size of a watermelon. Bowd and his mother Tonya are now hoping to raise $100,000 to fly to the United States so he can receive life-saving surgery before his condition turns fatal.

“As a mother, the last 12 months have been emotional. I can’t sleep and I’m always doing research about how to help my son,” Tonya told The Australian. “Some days I get to the point where I think we won’t get the help we need, but as a mother I can’t stop. I’m 100 percent committed to saving my son’s life.”

According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), massive scrotal lymphedema, also known as scrotal elephantiasis, is caused by the obstruction, aplasia, or hypoplasia of lymphatic vessels tasked with draining the scrotum. This lack of drainage can cause a thickening of scrotal skin and ulcerations. Common causes for this condition include infection, chronic inflammation, neoplasm, irradiation, and lymph node dissection. A recent case of scrotal lymphedema involved Wesley Warren Jr., who passed away in March after suffering multiple infections and two heart attacks.

Tonya said her son’s condition has turned potentially fatal in recent months after he began to develop infections that caused his temperatures to reach dangerous heights, his heart rate to skyrocket, and his body to turn septic. She claims they have reached out to every reproductive health specialist in Australia and are now turning to American physicians for help. Tyrone, who is also affected by a mental handicap, has grown restless over the lack of help he is getting from Australian health professionals.

“No one can help us in Australia,” Tonya added. “I had doctors discuss building a team to give surgery a go only to be told by a urologist that if I was to sign on the dotted line and allow anyone in Australia to operate I would be signing my son’s life away.” In spite of the unfortunate outcome, Bowd and his mother are looking to enlist the help of the surgeon who performed Warren Jr.’s corrective surgery, Dr. Joel Geldman. Geldman informed Tonya that he has performed the procedure upward of 175 times and is currently “monitoring Tyrone’s condition via medical reports CT scans, ultrasounds and photographs.” The family is accepting donations through Car Drive for Tyrone in hopes of sending the 24-year-old to the U.S. before his condition worsens. To date, donations have reached $6,000.