Nightclub worker diagnosed with brain tumour reveals key early sign

Yahoo

14 hours ago

A Birmingham nightclub worker was diagnosed with a brain tumour after getting lost in a place he knew "like the back of his hand".
Tom Weatherstone, from Sheldon, had visited Perranporth in Cornwall all his life but couldn't find his way back from the beach in summer 2022.
After he was diagnosed, he said his confusion may have been the first sign something was wrong.
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He also started having headaches, sickness and blurry pixelated vision in his right eye but his family believed they were linked to his job and lifestyle.
He was diagnosed less than a year later after he was sent for blood tests and a CT scan by a doctor who spotted his hand tremors during a routine and unrelated private appointment in March 2023.
The now-23-year-old was previously told he had a vitamin deficiency following a telephone consultation with his GP and was prescribed vitamin B12, D and folic acid.
He was told he needed surgery to treat it, which could result in him losing his sight, his memory, his mobility or even his speech.
Tom said: 'Retrospectively, the first sign came earlier, during a family holiday in the summer of 2022.
'One day, I walked back from the beach and got lost in a place I had known my whole life like the back of my hand.
"At the time, it seemed odd, but we didn't think much of it. Looking back, it was the beginning of something none of us could have imagined.'
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Tom's oldest sister, Josie, 27, said: 'When Tom started having headaches, throwing up, vision problems, and noticing a tremor in his hand, we put it down to his lifestyle and assumed his job in a nightclub, the noise and bright lights were the cause.
'After Tom was diagnosed with a mineral deficiency, none of us thought it was a symptom of a brain tumour.'
Tom continued: 'I had more bloods taken, another CT scan, and a sight test done at Heartlands Hospital in March 2023.
'By early the next morning, they confirmed again there was something there.
'I was transferred that same day to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham. I remember the anxiety building.
'I was scared. I just wanted to know what was in my head that was causing so much alarm.'
At the QE, Tom was diagnosed with an astrocytoma, a tumour which develops from star-shaped glial cells, and had urgent surgery to fit a shunt to relieve pressure on his brain and a biopsy.
He said: 'Doctors said the risks of surgery were loss of sight, mobility, memory or even speech loss.
'I was on my own, no family, and the doctor just said: 'It's a tumour'. I didn't know what to say.
'I rang my family straight away, I was in shock, devastated.
'I'd gone to the doctor for a routine check and now I was in hospital with a brain tumour.'
Tom had a second operation on May 22 2023 to 'debulk' the tumour, which resulted in the partial loss of peripheral vision in his right eye.
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Five days later, Tom returned home to recover, but at his follow-up appointment, he was given the devastating news that the tumour had progressed from grade 2 to grade 4.
He said: 'When I heard it was grade 4, I put on a brave face, but inside I was crushed.
'I stayed positive, I had to, but it wasn't easy.'
Tom underwent six weeks of radiotherapy, followed by a year of chemotherapy.
In December 2024, an MRI scan revealed a second astrocytoma, inoperable due to its sensitive location, but stable.
A third tumour is not responding to treatment. He now undergoes MRI scans every three months.
Now Josie and Tom's younger sister Gemma, 19, are taking on the 88 Squats a Day in July challenge to raise money for Brain Tumour Research in support of Tom and others affected.
They can be backed on their JustGiving page here.
Josie said: 'If we'd known Tom's symptoms were those of a brain tumour, we'd have taken him straight to hospital.
'I'm taking on the 88 Squats a Day Challenge for Tom because no-one should have to go through what he has.
'Watching someone you love face a brain tumour is heartbreaking.
'If raising awareness and money helps even one family get an earlier diagnosis or better treatment, every squat is worth it.'
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Katrina Jones, head of community and digital fundraising at Brain Tumour Research, said: 'We're incredibly grateful to Josie for taking on the 88 Squats Challenge in support of Tom.
'Her determination and strength are truly inspiring.
'Brain tumours are the biggest cancer killer of children and adults under 40 in the UK, yet research into them remains severely underfunded.
'Supporters like Josie play a vital role in helping us fund the research needed to improve outcomes and ultimately find a cure."
Brain Tumour Research funds sustainable research at dedicated centres in the UK.
It also campaigns for the Government and larger cancer charities to invest more in research into brain tumours to speed up new treatments for patients and, ultimately, find a cure.
The charity is the driving force behind the call for a national annual spend of £35 million to improve survival rates and patient outcomes in line with other cancers such as breast cancer and leukaemia.