No, he needed surgery to avoid being in excruciating pain and incapacitated for months.

If you look at it in terms of economic productivity, the inability of the doctors to schedule this properly was taking some useful out of the workforce and jeopardizing their continued employment and financial stability.

I was in such incredible pain for so long that I finally realized why people kill themselves. I had asked my wife to cut my arm off with an axe at one point.