'I was told I had heatstroke from Turkey holiday - reality was scary'
A young farmer's Turkish holiday turned into a life-threatening situation after what was initially brushed off as heatstroke led to a brain tumour diagnosis. Moli Morgan, 22, suffered two seizures while on a sunny break in Antalya with her boyfriend.
She said local medics put it down to the scorching 30C heat. Returning to the UK, Moli's sister's advice saw her receive crucial scans at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital. Despite feeling "pretty much completely fine", she was left stunned by the discovery of a 4cm glioma inside her head.
Moli found herself undergoing a four-hour awake craniotomy at Royal Stoke University Hospital in December last year, where surgeons asked her to repeat words in both Welsh - her first language - and English.
Six months post-op, Moli has defied all expectations with what doctors are calling an "incredible" recovery. She's returned to everyday life on the family farm in Llanerfyl, Powys, expressing gratitude to the healthcare heroes who saved her life.
Moli said: "It was obviously very scary and you expect the worst when you're told you have a brain tumour. I had no real warning signs before or during the holiday, I had never suffered any symptoms before. I have only ever had a migraine but didn't think anything of it at the time. Everything seemed to happen quickly."
She booked a getaway with her boyfriend of six years, Ollie Higgins, 22, an automotive technician, last October.
She said: "We'd had a lovely week there, it was really relaxed and there was a water park at the hotel which was great. It was hot, but not unbearable, around 28C to 30C.
"I felt absolutely fine and there were no warning signs for what was about to come the day before we were due to fly home. I'd had trouble sleeping, but felt OK apart from that and then I suffered a seizure at around 1am in the morning, followed by a second one about 20 minutes later.
"My boyfriend called the medics and they had a doctor on site at the hotel who told me it was probably just heatstroke. We had been in the sun all day and I hadn't drunk much water, so I sort of thought nothing more of it and that it was probably just heatstroke, and we flew home the next evening.
"One of my three sisters is a nurse and she suggested we got to hospital to check it out just to be on the safe side. We went to Shrewsbury Hospital and had an MRI scan and got the results back the same day.
"They had found I had a 4cm brain tumour on the left side and I just couldn't believe it, as I had no other real symptoms and felt completely fine. I do get a couple of migraines a year, but obviously that can be normal. It just came as such a massive shock.
"You just sort of try and deal with it, I think my parents and sisters were more worried. I stayed in hospital for four or five days, having anti-seizure tablets before I was allowed home."
Moli was later transferred to Royal Stoke, where she met with Dr Erminia Albanese, a consultant neurologist and her team, to discuss her options.
Moli said: "My surgeon explained that the procedure I needed would involve me being awake. I didn't even really think about it, I just thought 'do whatever you need to do'.
"While I was awake I had to have a translator there to make sure I was repeating words back in Welsh and English correctly. There was like this Powerpoint presentation with basic things like animals and food on them - and I had to repeat it back.
"There were a couple of times I didn't get it right, so they knew that was the part affecting my language and not to interfere there. It's mind-blowing what they can do, really.
"I remember parts of it, but the operation was around four hours and I don't remember it all. I had around 28 staples in my head and stayed in for a couple of days before I was allowed to go home.
"The operation was December 9 and then I had a follow-up scan, which found the tumour was benign and non-cancerous, which was obviously great news.
"I've had two follow-up MRI scans, and after my next one next month, they will start doing them every six months, so I'm still being monitored, but everything has been positive since."
The hospital emphasised the importance of Moli having an interpreter during her surgery to maintain communication and ensure she retained her ability to speak Welsh post-operation.
Dr Erminia Albanese said: "It was important we had our interpreter, Ben, with us during the operation. He would say a word in English and Moli had to reply in Welsh to ensure she could speak both Welsh and English after the tumour was removed.
"It was amazing to see Moli and her Mum, her recovery has been incredible and it's great to see her doing well after the surgery."
Following her recovery, Moli and her mum, Carol, showed their gratitude by donating £345 to Ward 228 and the UHNM Charity team, funds that were raised from a carol singing event organised by The Wales Federation of Young Farmers.
Carol said: "It's so nice to be back here to see and thank everyone for their care. We have lots of memories of being here and our outcome has been very good."
The NHS states that symptoms of a brain tumour can vary, depending on the specific part of the brain affected. Common symptoms include headaches, seizures, persistent nausea, vomiting and drowsiness, mental or behavioural changes - such as memory issues or personality alterations - progressive weakness or paralysis on one side of the body, and problems with vision or speech.
The NHS recommends seeing a GP if you experience these types of symptoms, especially if you have a headache that feels different from your usual type, or if your headaches are worsening.
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