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With any illness, you rarely become aware of the reality of it until someone you love becomes ill.  From that point on you come to realise just how much this can affect your lives.

In our case, Debbie became ill in July 2010, just a few months after we got married.  She became very unsteady, continually losing her balance, and the doctor thought she had an inner-ear problem, so he made an appoinment for her with an ENT consultant.

The appointment was not for 3 months, during which time she became worse, being unable to leave the house, even to go into the garden. 

When she did finally see the consultant, he referred her to a neurologist and within days of seeing him and having a scan, she was in hospital.

The scan revealed a very large brain tumour, a Hemangioblastoma which was fortunately benign and which they were able to remove completely, but the reality is that she could have died within days by the time she was admitted. 

If you would like to read the full story, Debbie created a web page about her brain tumour experience which you can read HERE.

Since then we have both met many wonderful people who have had brain tumours, some of whom have not been as lucky as us, and one of Debbie's relatives also recently passed away as the result of having a brain tumour.

I believe that research into the cause, diagnosis and treatment of brain tumours needs to be increased, and this means that more funding has to be made available.

Anything that you can do to help, whether by making a donation or by sharing this page, will help to fund further research into this terrible illness.

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So Why Am I Growing A Beard?

Firstly, it's November, a month when it's becoming common for men to grow a moustache to help raise funds for charity.

Secondly, I had a full beard from 1973 to 1993 when I shaved it off completely.  So I had a beard for 20 years, and 2013 is the 20th anniversary of it's removal.  It seems fitting that this year I should grow another one and to do it in November for a good cause.