8/12/2019 Brain Tumour Campaign 2

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CONFUSING the symptoms ofa brain tumour with those of a

migraine is a common but po-tentially lethal error.

Te Brain umour Charity,launched in 1996, was createdin response to the devastatingeffects of such a mistake, whenthe family of SamanthaDickson lost their 16-year-oldto terminal cancer. For monthsbefore her diagnosis in 1994,Samantha and her parents charity founders Neil and

Angela were told by doctorsthat her constant headaches

were caused by migraines,brought on by the pressures ofbeing a busy teenager.

By the time her tumour wasdiagnosed, she had less thanthree years left to live.

It is a confusion that SharonGreenway, from Hook, re-members all too vividly. Herson Alex was finally diagnosed

with a brain tumour in 2010,after months of hearing the

word migraine from GPs.

I was having lots of head-aches in 2010 and the doctororiginally thought it was mi-graines, said Alex, now 12.

Eventually I was referred tothe hospital. Tey did theirown test and said that it wasmigraines as well.

He was sent back and forthto doctors, until finally beingsent for an MRI scan in

October 2010, when a tumourthe size of a satsuma wasfound.

I will always rememberthat day, said Sharon. I dontknow how I drove home really,I dont remember it. I was justdazed and shocked. Tere isno way to describe the fearthat you have when you hearsomething like that about yourchild.

Ten I took a moment andrealised that this was some-thing that you have to deal

with. It has happened and wewill have to face it head on.

What was very scary wasthe fact that I didnt know any-thing about it. Ten when Imet people at the Brainumour Charity and spoke tothem about the cancer I real-ised how many parents outthere might be missing thesigns.

Alexs tumour had beengrowing undetected for three

years by the time he went un-der the knife for life-savingsurgery.

I didnt really understandit at first and it was weird tothink that there was some-thing growing in there, hesaid. It was frightening whenI realised that I would have tohave an operation and they

would have to cut it out. Ididnt know what would hap-pen and I was scared.

Now, two years on, Alex istumour and cancer-free, theonly sign of his trauma a scaron his head and the MRI scansas proof of thegrowth in his brain.

I had never feltthat feeling in myhead before and it

was strange to thinkof my head beingopened up, so Imnot surprised it hurt,he said. I have someproblems with bal-ance sometimes butI am much better. It

was because theyhad to operate onthat part of my brain.

We found out oneof the early symp-toms can be beingcross eyed, which I

was when I wasfour.

Now back atRobert Mays School

in Odiham, Alex is enjoyinggetting back into playing bad-minton, though rugby is strict-ly off-limits.

He will go for an MRI scanevery year until he is in his 20s,but his story is a much happier

one than many. Sharon admitsthat despite the long waits andthe fear of not having the an-swers, the family has been

very lucky with the result.We still dont know why he

developed it thats important.

Tats what this research canhelp with as well, she added.

As a parent you ask, was itme? Could I have done any-thing? With more research

we can stop these questionsin the future. Its unbelievably

important for families toknow the signs. Its not a likelything, but parents should beaware.

We were lucky, but someparents and children wontbe.

11News & Mail13 December 2012

FREYACOPELANDasMrsDarling

(Emmerdale)

Starring

JASSAAHLUWALIA

asPeterPan(DisneyJuniorArt Attack)

TheCamberleyTheatre presentsJM BarriesbyarrangementwithGreat OrmondStreetHospitalChildrensCharityandSamuelFrenchLimited

JAMESDINSMOREasCaptainHook

R e a l I n d i a n C o o k i n g

Sponsoredby

BoxOffice01276707600Bookonlinewww.camberleytheatre.bizCamberleyTheatre,KnollRoad,CamberleyGU153SY

Sat 8 Dec 2012 Sat 5 Jan 2013

I confirm I have paid or will pay an amount of Income Tax and/or Capital Gains

Tax for the current tax year (6 April to 5 April) that is at least equal to the amountof tax that all the charities and Community Amateur Sports Clubs (CASCs) that Idonate to will reclaim on my gifts for the current tax year. I understand that othertaxes such as VAT and Council Tax do not qualify. I understand the charity willreclaim 25p of tax on every 1 that I have given.

I agree that The Brain Tumour Charity can claim Gift Aid on this and all thedonations I have paid in the last four years and all donations I make from thedate of this declaration until I notify you otherwise.

Make your donation worth 25% more!

Please tick this box if you dont wish to be kept up-to-date with our work andhow your donation is helping. We do not share your details with third parties.

Complete this form and post it to:The Brain Tumour Charity, Hartshead House,61-65 Victoria Rd, Farnborough, GU14 7PA. Registered Charity 1128354.

Donation FormYes, I pledge to help change lives by making a donation

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(made payable to The Brain Tumour Charity)

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IT is the biggest cancer killerof children and adults under40. More than 8,500 people

are diagnosed with a seriousform of it every year 25people every day. As many as500 of these are children andyoung people. On average25% of these will die. Thatsone every three days.When faced with statistics likethese, most people areshocked to discover that thedisease in question is not lungor skin cancer, but braintumours. That is why this yeartheNews & Mailhas launched

its Christmas Gift of HopeAppeal to raise funds for TheBrain Tumour Charity.Based in Farnborough, the15-year-old charity hasbecoming a leading source offunding for high-quality,peer-reviewed brain tumourresearch, channelling morethan 8 million into findingbreakthroughs and ways tosave lives. It also operates avital support network forpeople affected by braintumours, helping provideassistance and information forthose coming to terms withthe devastating disease.

The Christmas Gift of HopeAppeal aims to help thecharity hit its next 50,000target over Christmas, in order

to directly fund a new pioneer-ing research project whichcould ultimately save lives.

GPs and hospital staffdiagnosed migraines

byAmy Taylor andNick Edmondson

Alex Greenway, 12, with his mother Sharon. Alex hasan x-ray of the brain tumour that he had removed.

Picture: Nick Edmondson. (Ref: AN127638_3)

WE just need money this isthe plea from a mother whohas raised more than 160,000for brain cancer research in hersons memory.

Brain cancer is indiscrimi-nate, said Jeannette Bolt, wholost her 16-year-old, Alex, lastMay. He was really fit, reallyhealthy, and suddenly struckdown and died within a year.He looked completely incon-gruous in the hospital wardnext to all these sick people,but it turned out he was thesickest person there.

Since his death, Jeannettehas become something of a

champion for the Brainumour Charity, planning sev-eral events for the Alex Boltfund every year, including cof-fee mornings, pamper eve-nings and gala dinners, and afun run next year.

We wantedto do something,and this seemedthe right way togo forward. I feellike I have gotmy own charity

without any ofthe admin costs.Te problem

with brain tu-mours is thesymptoms areso diverse, weneed to raiseawareness of

what could be abrain tumour so

people see thedoctor sooner.Since launching her sons

fund a month after his death,she has raised 107,000, plusan extra 66,000 at a gala inNovember where cricketer

Darren Gough was a guest. Heheard about Alex through amutual friend and decided tohelp us he really admired

Alexs strength.For Jeannette, working with

the Brain umour Charity is

her way of keepingAlexs memory alive,in the hope a cure willbe found through re-search. I really hopeand pray that one dayit will be the ca se, shesaid.n o donate to ourGift of Hope cam-paign, text HOPE to70123. You will becharged 5 plus onemessage at yourstandard networkrate. Te charity willreceive 100% of yourdonation, excluding

O2 customers where99% will be received.By using this service, you

agree that they may contactyou in the future. If youd rath-er they didnt, text NOMORE to70123.

The Christmas

GIFTOFHOPE

Alex Bolt, who died in 2011 aged 16 of a braintumour.

We need money to find a cure

Festive

Fun Facts Advertising Feature

MILLERS Ark Animals is onceagain delighted to announceits exciting Christmas pro-gramme at Manor Farm, justoff the M3 junction 5 nearHook in Hampshire.

Dates for Carols in the Barn,the much loved familyChristmas event, are SundayDecember 16 and SaturdayDecember 22 at 11am. Comealong and enjoy a good oldsing-song of all your favouritecarols and Christmas songs,

whilst staff and animals keepyou entertained. Includes afree mince pie!

ickets must be bought inadvance at 6 per person.Tese will all be followed bySanta Special Open Days in theafternoon!!

See our website for more ex-citing details! Santa Express

rides all afternoon and loadsmore fun. We are also open onSunday December 23 from12.30pm to 4pm.

Millers Arks Magical LivingNativities by lantern light willbe held on selected dates on

weekday evenings inDecember. Journey with Maryand Joseph around the farm asthey look for a place to stay,and then join them around themanger with all of the animals.

A wonderful interactive experi-ence for all.

ickets which include a hotsupper must be bought in ad-

vance at 14 per person. Dontmiss this opportunity to jointhe Millers Ark team at ManorFarm, Blackstocks Lane, Hookfor Christmas cheer. o book,please call the office on 01256767596. Millers Ark Animals has an exciting Christmas programme.

Celebrate now withMillers Ark Animals

BEAUY & Te Beast runs until Sunday December30. Fabulous sets, stunning costumes, fantasticdancers, a great script and wonderful cast come to-gether to make this a truly magical production.

Excellent songs, music and dance numbers, andan unforgettable friendly atmosphere all go intomaking the Princes Hall pantomime a great familyChristmas tradition. Aldershots favourites RobertHopkins and Donovan Christian-Cary are back foranother knock-out pantomime and lead a reunitedand strong artistic team. Beauty & Te Beast isRoberts 19th consecutive pantomime at the venueas producer and director, alongside the talentedJames Barry as writer. Tis year will also markDonovan Christian Carys ninth consecutive show.

Edward Haversham, marketing and box officemanager at the Princes Hall, said: We are all veryexcited that this years magical production will reu-nite so many well known faces from previous PrincesHall pantomimes. ickets have been selling sinceJanuary, so people need to secure their tickets soon-er rather than later!

ickets are only 15.50 for children and seniors,and 16.50 for adults, plus discounts are availablefor groups. Call the box office on 01252 329 155 or

visit www.princeshall.com to book seats.

Be our guest atBeauty panto

PEER Pan has flown intoCamberley Teatre thisChristmas, bringing with it allthe panto-land magic, musicand mayhem that Camberley

Teatre audiences have cometo love from the theatres spar-kling pantomimes.

Starring singer-songwriterand actor Jassa Ahluwalia(Disney Junior Channel Art

Attack) in the lead role as PeterPan and Freya Copeland(Emmerdale) as Mrs Darling,this magical adventure is theperfect treat for all the family.Cheer on Peter, Wendy, Johnand Michael as they encounterFairies, Red Indians, Te LostBoys, Mermaids, the dastardlyCaptain Hook and a tickingcrocodile in hot pursuit!

With enough laughs, songs

and dancing to sink a pirateship, Peter Pan is set to thrillaudiences of all ages, featuringthe traditional elements of J MBarries original story, inter-

twined with all the pantomimefeatures you know and love,and plenty of audienceparticipation!

Peter Pan and his friendswill be popping up acrossSurrey during the Christmasseason! Captain Hook, Smeeand iger Lily will be stoppingto say hello to everyone at JakesPlayzone in Bagshot from11am to noon on SaturdayDecember 15.

Meanwhile all the cast willbe at Panto in the Park on

Wednesday December 19 from5.30pm to 7.30pm at LondonRoad Recreation Ground.

Camberley Teatre presents Peter Panthis festive season.

Youll be hookedby this pantomime

Mrs Darling will be hostingStory elling ime at CamberleyLibrary on Tursday December20 from 2pm to 2.30pm and

Wendy Darling will be doingthe same at Farnham Libraryon Friday December 21 from

11am to noon.Peter Panruns until January

5 2013 and prices start at15.95, plus group and familyticket deals. Box office: 01276707600 or www.camberleythe-atre.biz.