God Filled a Hole in a Missionary’s Head

The surgeon gave Frank Cantrill the disturbing diagnosis that his skull had died.

Editor’s note: Medical photos at the end of the article may be disturbing to some people. We included them to give a better understanding of Frank Cantrill’s miracle story.

By Andrew McChesney, Adventist Mission

Frank Cantrill, a former missionary and retired Seventh-day Adventist pastor in Australia, was shocked when doctors diagnosed him with skin cancer two years ago.

But an even bigger surprise came a few weeks ago when a gaping hole in his head healed in what stunned doctors called a miracle.

The experience has strengthened the faith of people worldwide who have been praying for Frank and receive regular e-mailed updates from his wife.

“I cannot thank the Lord enough for His goodness,” Frank told Adventist Mission. “I hope this is helpful to someone who may be struggling with health issues.”

Frank, 72, an Avondale theology graduate, has friends across the globe after working as a missionary in New Guinea, pastoring for four years in England, and serving as a church pastor and administrator in Australia.

Asked about his background, Frank downplayed his biography.

“I am no one special, just one of God’s many workers who work very hard to further the gospel to the world,” he said. “Throughout my ministry, I have been so blessed.”

Those who know Frank said his missionary spirit has grown only stronger with his illness.

“Frank is just so positive and constantly tells his doctors that he has a mightily God who cares for him,” said Nerida Koolik, a family friend.

The story began when Frank was diagnosed with stage-four melanoma, a kind of skin cancer, on his head in 2014.

“It was a shock to be told that if the new drugs didn’t work, I would not have too many chances,” Frank said.

A local pastor anointed him, and people began to pray for him. Frank underwent a series of operations, radiation treatments, and immunotherapies with his wife, Marlene, at his side.

Complications arose after an operation where doctors removed a large melanoma from the back of Frank’s head, leaving part of his skull exposed. Nurses dressed the wound, waiting for the skin to grow back over the skull, and later his wife took over.

The wound healed well at first, but then the skin just stopped growing.

“I kept dressing it with all sorts of things to try and encourage the flesh to grow over the skull, but it wouldn’t budge,” Marlene said in an e-mail to friends.

One day, the color of the exposed skull changed from white to yellow. A plastic surgeon gave Frank the disturbing diagnosis that his skull had died. The surgeon called in a leading plastic surgeon for consultations, and the two decided to perform a major surgery with the assistance of a neurosurgeon. The complex operation would take eight to 10 hours and require the doctors to replace Frank’s skull with an artificial one.

“The news was a shock to us,” Marlene said. “But we prepared ourselves as we are becoming a bit bulletproof these days.”

A few days later, as Marlene was changing the dressing on Frank’s head, a chunk of discolored skull came off with the dressing and rested in her hand.

“I nearly collapsed with shock!” Marlene said. “But when I looked closer, what I saw was so amazing.”

Underneath the chunk of skull that had come off, she could see that Frank’s flesh had been growing across the skull and had covered the gaping hole.

Over the next two days, Frank visited three medical specialists to find out what was happening. He learned that the human skull has three layers, and his flesh had been growing underneath the first layer, eventually forcing the top layer of the skull to pop off.

“All the specialists were blown away,” Marlene said. “The clinician said, ‘I have never seen this in all my life,’ and she has worked in this field for many years.”

The medical specialists declared it a miracle.

“They said, ‘Who is looking after you?’” Marlene said.

Frank and Marlene pointed to God as the Great Physician.

The operation was canceled, and Frank was sent back home.

“God knows what is happening, and He has perfect timing,” Marlene said. “All we can say is ‘Praise the Lord!””

Editor’s note: The following medical photos may be disturbing to some people. We are publishing them to give a better understanding of Frank Cantrill’s miracle story.