“I Never Thought It Would Be Me” – My Journey with a Grade 3 Brain Tumour

In April 2026, I will be taking on the huge challenge of running the London Landmarks Half Marathon for a special cause super close to my heart.

In 2021, at just 34 years old, my world changed overnight. I was diagnosed with a grade 3 oligodendroglioma — a type of brain tumour I had never even heard of before. The shock was overwhelming. Being told that until they removed it and did a biopsy they were unable to tell me how long I had left to live, only that it will return one day once again, was the brutal reality I had to face.

Within 3 weeks, I underwent a 9-hour brain surgery at Addenbrooke’s Hospital who were amazing with me. What followed was 6 weeks of intense radiotherapy, which caused me to lose all my hair, and then 9 months of intensive chemotherapy where every cycle became more brutal. It was the toughest two years of my life.

Now, I have regular MRI scans to monitor for any signs of the tumour coming back. I’ve learned the hard way that life is too short to take anything for granted. I never thought it would be me that got cancer.

But what shocked me just as much as the diagnosis was discovering how underfunded and unknown brain tumour research is. Brain tumours are the biggest cancer killer of people under 40, yet they receive only 1% of the UK’s cancer research funding. That’s simply not good enough.

Now it’s my turn to give back. I’m raising money for Brain Tumour Charity, an incredible organisation that supported me from the very beginning — giving me someone to call, resources to understand my diagnosis, and a community I didn’t even know I needed. They even offered counselling for friends and family if they needed it.

Do I know how long before the tumour returns or how long I have left?? No, I don’t but that’s why raising money to help others like me is so important.

Every donation, big or small, helps fund life-saving research and support for patients like me so we can continue to fight another day.

Please help me make a difference.

#BrainTumourAwareness #FundTheFight #LifeIsTooShort #CancerResearch #Oligodendroglioma #AddenbrookesHospital #SupportBrainTumourResearch