I pushed aside persistent headaches like eyestrain from a new job. Then a devastating diagnosis turned my life upside down

Daniel Goodwin had assumed eye strain from a new job was the cause of his persistent headaches, until a devastating MRI revealed he had a 5.2cm brain tumor.

The Adelaide father-of-two searched for answers for his migraines and neck pain for eight months before receiving the devastating diagnosis on May 13, 2022.

‘I was in quite a bit of pain and took two Panadol every day. I had just started a new job and thought it was my attitude or something to do with my eyes,” Mr Goodwin told Daily Mail Australia.

The former defense worker said doctors suggested his headaches might be due to a pulled muscle, so he went to a physical therapist and to OPSM to get new glasses, both of which “seemed to help for a while.”

But when the pain returned, he went back to the doctors who ordered an X-ray and then suggested a CT scan when it revealed no cause.

“I asked if there were any other options and he said there was an MRI, but that would be a deductible because Medicare wouldn’t cover it. I said let’s just do that and it was the best $450 I ever spent,” Mr Goodwin said.

Tests showed the tumor was benign, but still life-threatening because it was against an artery and blocking the flow of spinal fluid, which had caused his symptoms due to a build-up of pressure in his skull.

‘From that moment on, life as we knew it turned. That same Thursday, Daniel underwent emergency surgery to relieve pressure in his brain, and a valve was installed to help regulate the flow of spinal fluid,” his sister-in-law Katelyn said at a GoFundMe.

Mr Goodwin’s MRI revealed a 5.2cm tumor in his brain, pressed against a main artery

The operation was successful in relieving Mr Goodwin’s headaches, but removal of the tumor required a separate 16-hour operation.

Surgeons removed 80 percent of the tumor, but the rest was too close to the primary arteries. Attempts to remove the entire tumor risked permanent disability or death.

While Mr Goodwin was recovering, he and his wife Danni learned they were pregnant with their second child, Sophie, who is now two years old.

Instead of a blissful baby bubble, the couple was forced to draw up wills and make plans for future surgeries.

Doctors took a wait-and-see approach and hoped the tumor would remain inactive, but it continues to grow by about 1mm every six months.

It has now grown back to about half its original size, about 2.9mm, but Mr Goodwin remains positive about his treatment options.

“It’s strange, at the moment I feel fine, but there is a danger that it puts pressure on important parts of the brain and affects blood flow,” he said.

Surgeons were able to successfully remove 80 percent of the tumor in Mr Goodwin’s brain

The tumor (pictured) has since grown back to about half its original size, about 2.9mm

Radiation is now his best hope in tackling the tumor, with his oncologist recommending proton therapy, a new form of treatment that uses positively charged protons instead of traditional X-ray or photon beams.

The proton therapy will cause less damage to surrounding tissue, but Mr Goodwin will have to go abroad as it is not offered in Australia.

There are 19 facilities offering the treatment in the United States and six in Japan.

Mr Goodwin has applied to the federally funded Medical Treatment Overseas Program (MTOP), which gives Australians with life-threatening conditions access to life-saving treatments in other countries that offer them.

“If funding is denied, it will only be traditional radiotherapy here in Australia,” he said.

‘They can never completely remove the tumor, because there is too great a chance that the artery next to it will be damaged.’

Mr Goodwin (pictured with his wife Danni) now needs radiation therapy and hopes to receive a new version of the treatment known as proton therapy.

Family and friends are raising money to support Daniel’s wife and their two children, Sophie and her five-year-old sister Olivia.

Mr Goodwin said he and his wife told the two girls as much as they could “without being dramatic”.

“We’re not trying to hide anything because that would be worse in the long run if something were to happen to me,” he said.

‘Sophie is too young to understand what’s going on, but Olivia does to some extent.

“We’ll say we’re going to my brain doctor and she’ll understand. She is very eager to learn and understands medical matters.’