Fitness fanatic, 43, thought he had ‘festive flu’…but it was actually the deadliest type of brain tumour that’s left him unrecognisable
A fitness fanatic has told of his horror when work-related stress and a ‘Christmas flu’ turned out to be an incurable brain tumour.
Adam Chapman from Worcester suffered from headaches six months after his wedding day in 2022.
But it was only when the 43-year-old also began having difficulty standing and walking and had trouble understanding simple instructions that his family forced him to call an ambulance.
Hospital tests revealed that he suffered from high-grade glioblastoma, one of the deadliest forms of brain tumor.
Typical treatment plans for the “aggressive” cancer — which affects around 3,000 Britons and 12,000 Americans each year — see patients undergo surgery before chemotherapy and radiotherapy. This is still the way it was treated in the early 2000s.
Adam Chapman (pictured) from Worcester suffered from headaches for six months after his wedding day in 2022
But it was only after the 43-year-old also had difficulty standing or walking and had trouble understanding simple instructions that his family forced him to call an ambulance
Tests revealed he had high-grade glioblastoma, one of the deadliest types of brain tumors.
Mr Chapman, who used to work out five days a week in the gym, has now undergone two operations as well as months of heavy radiotherapy and chemotherapy.
His memory, cognition and vision are also “severely impaired” after he suffered a stroke during his first 12-hour surgery.
Mr Chapman, who had also competed in 10km obstacle course races before his diagnosis, recalled his diagnosis and said: ‘I put the headaches down to work-related stress, fatigue and the last lingering traces of the Christmas flu.
‘My thoughts were hazy and everything seemed off. I slowly started to lose control of my brain and body.
‘People seem to think I’m fine because I’ve had surgery and chemotherapy and am now home.
‘They don’t understand that my tumor will keep coming back for the rest of my now limited life and that our treatments are just trying to delay the cancer as long as possible.’
He added: ‘Without the invaluable support of friends and family, who have been through this nightmare with me, it would all have been even harder.’
Patients diagnosed with the condition usually undergo surgery to remove as much of the tumor as possible.
Mr Chapman, who used to train five days a week in the gym, has now undergone two operations as well as months of heavy radiotherapy and chemotherapy.
His memory, cognition and vision are also all ‘severely impaired’ after he suffered a stroke during his first 12-hour surgery
You will then receive daily radiation and chemotherapy for about six weeks, after which the medication will be reduced.
Radiation can then be used to destroy extra tumor cells and treat those not good enough for surgery. But the cancer can double in size in just seven weeks.
The average survival time for glioblastoma is between 12 and 18 months, according to the Brain Tumour Charity. Only 5 percent of patients survive five years, it says.
The disease claimed the life of Labour politician Dame Tessa Jowell in 2018.
In March 2022, Tom Parker, lead singer of The Wanted, also passed away after an 18-month battle with stage four glioblastoma.
Mr Chapman is now working with Brain Tumour Research and is calling on the government to make good on its 2018 pledge to invest £40 million in research.
He added: ‘It is so frustrating that the government has still not invested the money it promised and that only 1 per cent of national spending on cancer research has been allocated to the disease since records began in 2002.
The average survival time for glioblastoma is between 12 and 18 months, according to the Brain Tumour Charity. Only 5 percent of patients survive five years, it says
The cancer, which is diagnosed in around 3,000 Britons and 12,000 Americans each year, is still treated in the same way as it was in the early 2000s. It claimed the life of Labour politician Dame Tessa Jowell in 2018
Wanted singer Tom Parker (pictured with wife Kelsey Parker in October 2021) passed away in March 2022 after an 18-month battle with stage four glioblastoma. He said after his diagnosis that he was “shocked” by the limited treatment options for GBM and that “huge improvements” were needed
‘It is incredibly important to raise awareness about brain tumors. It is still widely misunderstood compared to other forms of cancer.
“People don’t seem to understand that there is no cure.”
Hugh Adams, spokesman for Brain Tumour Research, said: ‘When the government made £40 million available to brain tumour researchers, we never anticipated that the money would not be fully spent.
‘Six years later, only 25 percent of that funding is actually in the hands of the scientists who hold the key to solving the unique, complex puzzle that is brain tumors.
“Our 2024 manifesto ‘It’s time to do things differently’ is very clear: we want the government to work with Brain Tumor Research to develop a roadmap for the full deployment of this money.
‘Patients with brain tumors do not have the luxury of sufficient time and all barriers to research funding must be identified and removed.
“If we don’t, the shocking statistics about this devastating disease will continue to persist. And that is unacceptable to all of us at Brain Tumour Research.”