IT HAS been five years since Lee Conway was last able to eat a meal.

The 29-year-old would love to tuck in to his favourite dishes of spaghetti bolognese, pizza or chips. Or even drink a beer.

But physically it is impossible.

Lee has the rare stomach disorder Dysmotility, which means he is sick at least once a day and cannot digest food or liquids.

Lee, who used to race Motocross bikes competitively before his illness, is fed through a tube into his small intestine and receives daily doses of morphine, as well as two types of anti-sickness tablets.

Lee said: “I used to have a very healthy appetite. But I just physically cannot eat a meal. When I do I will vomit repeatedly.

“It must have been five years since I last ate a proper meal.”

When Lee was first admitted to hospital in 2005 with crippling stomach pains and severe vomiting, doctors were at a loss to tell what was wrong with him.

After a series of tests and examinations, doctors decided he had the eating disorder bulimia.

But Lee, who is 6ft tall and at one point saw his weight drop below eight stone, was adamant there was something else wrong.

A psychiatrist confirmed there was no psychological reason behind his condition and he was sent to a private clinic in London.

Experts discovered the former welder at the BMW Cowley plant was suffering from the condition Dysmotility.

It means food stays in the digestive system and, in extreme cases, causes regular vomiting. he illness affects thousands of people every year, and – in a few rare cases such as Lee’s – sufferers cannot eat solid food.

Even eating a yoghurt poses problems.

One pot could take all day to eat because he can only manage a few mouthfuls at a time.

Over the past five years he has been in and out of hospital and still vomits at least once a day. Only a bowel transplant will cure the problem.

Lee said: “My life is completely different to that of any other 29-year-old.

“I would love to be able to go to a pub and have a meal, and I would love to go to work, but I just can’t.”

Jobless Lee, who lives with his parents in Lay Avenue, Berinsfield, has undergone at least 25 endoscopies, where a tube is placed down his throat to check on the extent of the illness.

Now he wants to make people aware of the condition. He said: “I want there to be more awareness around this and for the Government to fund proper research. There must be loads of other people like me with a similar problem, but because it is not well recognised they are suffering in silence.”