A cancer patient has reheard the sound of his voice after five months muted thanks to an unprecedented surgery.

Peter Pugh-Cook’s voice was reduced to a whisper in February after his left vocal cord was paralysed due to a tumour pressing on a nerve.

The 79-year-old from Rochester, who suffers from advanced lung cancer, was struggling to be understood on the phone and was having to whisper in people’s ears just to be heard.

After almost half a year of near silence, the retired photographer was referred to Dr Oyazarbal at Medway Maritime Hospital, and underwent the procedure known as Laryngeal Medialisation Injection, to inject an implant into his vocal chord while on local anaesthetic.

Due to his cancer, he was deemed not fit enough to have the surgery under general anaesthesia so agreed for it to be performed while awake.

Peter said: “During my appointment with Dr Oyarzabal he told me he had performed the procedure on other patients under local anaesthetic elsewhere but never at Medway so I would be the first.

“By this point, I was willing to give anything a go to get my voice back, and after he explained everything to me I had complete confidence in him.

“There was no pain, only a slight bit of discomfort.

“To start with I couldn’t produce any sound but after going to the recovery room and carrying out some exercises with a speech and language therapist, less than two hours after the operation I was able to hear the sound of my own voice again for the first time in five months.

“I kept talking to myself while I was on the ward and each time my voice was getting louder and louder. I just kept thinking to myself ‘is this really happening?

“Life was pretty intolerable when all I could do was whisper.

“People struggled to hear me on the phone unless they turned the volume up their end and at times when I went shopping, if I needed assistance I often had to whisper into the person’s ears so they could understand what I was saying.

“I’m so happy I have my voice back again as it means I can talk properly to my son and daughter and my two grandchildren. I’m extremely grateful to Mr Oyarzabal.”

The surgery was a first for the hospital with Dr Oyarzabal having performed it only a few times before himself at a different clinic but now hopes with this success others can be helped in the future.

He said: “I am absolutely delighted that we were able to help Mr Pugh-Cook regain the sound of his voice again.

“As a result, I’m pleased to say that we are now offering the procedure as a new service through our outpatients Ear Nose and Throat voice clinic.

“There is plenty of evidence available to suggest that by carrying out this procedure early – even in the case of incomplete paralysis or muscle weakness – coupled with speech and language therapy, leads to a more favourable functional outcome for the patient.”