Eaton Bray grandmother's brain tumour fight inspires family star jump challenge

An Eaton Bray brain tumour survivor has inspired two generations of her family to take part in a month-long fundraiser to help fund research into the disease.

Elaine Brown was first diagnosed with an acoustic neuroma in December 1995. The then-28-year-old had surgery to remove it but was diagnosed with a second one in May 2002 at the age of 34. She underwent another craniotomy, during which she had a cranial plate fitted, and was put in a coma for four days after to allow her brain time to recover. The 54-year-old, who is featured in a book called The Brain and Central Nervous System (Your Body, Your Health), was left completely deaf in her right ear as a result of her tumour growing in her inner ear.

Her daughter Emma Brown-Andrews, 34, said: “I’m the oldest of four so I remember Mum going into hospital and leaving with staples in the back of her head.”

Inspired by her ‘amazing’ mum’s experience, Emma and her daughters, Sophie, eight, and Georgia, three, are preparing to take part in the Brain Tumour Research charity’s 100 Squats or Star Jumps a day in November Challenge.

The primary school teacher, from Leighton Buzzard, said: “Last year I did the challenge and found it pretty tough but this year I started Fit Body Boot Camp in Milton Keynes and have lost some weight and become a lot more active, so I feel better about it and am raring to go. Last time I went to different places for it and ended up doing star jumps in a nightclub whilst out with a friend, and at the top of the hill at Whipsnade Zoo, so I’ve said to my girls we’ll have to see how many different places we can do this time, too.”

Emma added: “It’s important for me to raise money for the charity because there needs to be more money going straight to the cause, for research. It’s also important for me to raise awareness; brain tumour symptoms can be dismissed more easily than that of other cancers, so people need to be that much more aware of them. If they get persistent headaches, they need to make sure they get them checked out rather than ignore them by taking painkillers.”

Charlie Allsebrook, community development manager for Brain Tumour Research, said: “Brain tumours kill more children and adults under the age of 40 than any other cancer, yet, historically, just one per cent of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to this devastating disease. We’re working to change this.”

Brain Tumour Research funds sustainable research at dedicated centres in the UK. It also campaigns for the Government and the larger cancer charities to invest more in research into brain tumours in order to speed up new treatments for patients and, ultimately, to find a cure.

To add to Emma’s fundraising, visit the Facebook page.