When Jonathan Plummer told the doctors he was drinking up to 10 liters of water a day, the doctors assumed he had diabetes.
Because extreme thirst is a telltale sign of the condition.
However, doctors were stunned when the 41-year-old’s test results for diabetes came back negative.
Instead, the cause of the postman’s extreme thirst was a brain tumor in his pituitary gland.
The pea-sized part of the brain helps regulate our sense of thirst and commands us to drink when it senses we’re getting dehydrated.
But in Mr. Plummer’s case, the system went haywire, instructing him to drink about four times more than the recommended amount each day.
When Jonathan Plummer told the doctors he was drinking up to 10 liters of water a day, the doctors assumed he had diabetes. Because extreme thirst is a telltale sign of the condition
However, doctors were stunned when the 41-year-old’s test results for diabetes came back negative
Instead, the cause of the postman’s extreme thirst was a brain tumor in his pituitary gland. The pea-sized part of the brain helps regulate our sense of thirst and commands us to drink when it detects we’re getting dehydrated
It wasn’t until he went for a routine eye test in 2002 that the mass was noticed and he was referred to Derriford Hospital for an MRI scan.
It turned out that he had a brain tumor, specifically a germ cell tumor.
Mr. Plummer, from Falmouth in Cornwall, had to undergone 30 radiation treatments but is now tumor free.
Reflecting on his ordeal, he said, “I felt a constant thirst that I could not quench and got to the point where I passed as much water as I drank.
“It was a horrible time that left me missing work for days at a time and experiencing extreme fatigue.”
Mr Plummer, from Falmouth in Cornwall, had 30 rounds of radiation but is now tumor free. Pictured six months after diagnosis
He said he was “devastated” by his diagnosis.
Mr. Plummer received steroid therapy as part of his cancer treatment, which had the side effect of putting on weight, going from 12th to 18th.
However, the treatment prevents him from playing rugby and cricket, something he was a fan of before.
‘I was always very active and played rugby and cricket every week, something I never got to go back to.
“I started running and swimming as non-contact exercise and have regained control of my weight.”
But he is now on a mission to raise money for the charity Brain Tumor Research through a sponsored skydive.
Mel Tiley, community development manager at the charity, said: ‘We’re grateful to Jonathan for sharing his story and it’s great to hear how he’s found positivity after being diagnosed with a brain tumour.’
His story reminds us that brain tumors are random; they can affect anyone at any age.
“We are determined to change this, but only by working together can we improve treatment options for patients and ultimately find a cure.”
While this is not true in Mr. Plummer’s case, increased thirst and urination are normally common symptoms of diabetes, a condition that causes one’s blood sugar to get too high.
Germ cell tumors develop in the body’s germ cells, which are usually located in the ovaries or testes.
However, germ cells can sometimes be found in other parts of the body, such as the brain.
This is normally the result of accidentally leaving germ cells behind as the body develops in the womb, before that person is even born.
According to Cancer Research UK, around 12,000 cases of brain tumors are diagnosed in the UK each year, with around 5,000 deaths.
Survival varies greatly depending on the specific type of tumor and its exact location in the brain, with only 10 percent of people diagnosed living longer than 10 years.