A pub manager who put his pounding headaches down to his busy lifestyle was shocked to discover he actually had a brain tumour. Ben Wilson, 36, from Ackworth, West Yorkshire, was working long hours as the area manager of 10 pubs when he first started suffering daily headaches in January 2020.
After deciding the headaches were caused by his busy work schedule, Ben tried to get more sleep and drink more water. It was only when his life slowed down as he was furloughed during the Covid pandemic and his headaches continued that he realised something was wrong.
Ben, who lives with his NHS-worker partner, said: “I’ve always tried to just look after myself rather than running to the doctor or thinking the worst. So, before lockdown, I just drank more water and tried to get more sleep to deal with the headaches.
“But when I was furloughed, I didn’t have to work anymore or make long journeys but the headaches – a pounding sensation across my head that seemed to last all day – were still there. I realised then that it couldn’t be my busy life.”
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Ben always kept fit and remained active until his life was drastically changed when the pandemic hit. He said: “Obviously the pub industry was hit hard by the lockdown. I was doing a full time job [and] then was suddenly at home while my partner was still working for the NHS.”
At the start of May 2020, after suffering with headaches for a month while furloughed, Ben decided he needed to take action. He explained: “I was in the garden pottering around when I realised I had to do something. I had this pounding and dizziness in my head when I tipped my head back, like if I was looking at the sky or drinking from a bottle or can.
“I searched online and assumed it was vertigo. Definitely not a brain tumour.
"But that day I finally realised it wasn’t random. It was only when I moved my head that way.”
After Ben’s doctor become so concerned by his symptoms during a telephone appointment, he was asked to come in urgently for a face-to-face appointment. He said: “That was my first indication that something was seriously wrong, as obviously at the height of Covid, they weren’t in a rush to have people in the surgery.”
He attended the appointment that same morning and was asked whether his headaches were the worst he had ever experienced. When he said yes, Ben was told to head straight to Pinderfields General Hospital in Wakefield.
Ben said: “I was given a CT scan straight away. When I was called back in, the lady explained they’d found a very large growth on my brain. I didn’t go home for two weeks.”
Though doctors could not initially determine the type of tumour, it was later diagnosed as a slow growing begin tumour called a pilocytic astrocytoma. It was suggested the tumour, which contained both solid and liquid matter, may have been growing for up to 10 years on Ben’s cerebellum – an area at the back of the brain that plays an important role in movement, co-ordination and balance.
Ben said: “It was all just such a huge shock. I don’t feel I really had time to take it in.”
On 12 May, exactly a week after he first saw his GP and after being transferred to Leeds General Infirmary, Ben underwent an eight-hour surgery under general anaesthetic to remove the tumour. When he woke up in intensive care, he had a dedicated member of staff by his bedside night and day for 24 hours, ensuring he could stay awake, be roused and checking his vital signs.
Ben said: “I felt horrendous. The scarring was on the dead centre back of my head so lying down was quite difficult. I was very uncomfortable [and] in a lot of pain.”
Ben was discharged a week later and, as he was still furloughed, was able to recuperate at home by limiting activities and resting for the required six weeks. He said: “It was such a whirlwind from ringing the doctors to two weeks later you’re home with a scar and needing aids to get in the bath.
"At the peak of my recovery, for weeks following the operation, I was taking 27 tablets a day.”
Ben recovered quickly, and within six months, he was able to drive again. Around the same time, he returned to work.
He said: “I feel really lucky my tumour wasn’t cancerous and to have recovered so well. I feel generally fine now and just have some lingering dizziness now and again.”
He is sure that, had it not been for the first lockdown, he would have gone longer without a diagnosis or the surgery he needed. He said: “My experience with having a brain tumour is interwoven with everyone else’s experience of Covid-19.
“I can’t say what would have happened if I hadn’t got it checked out when I did, but it wouldn’t have been good. I imagine my headaches would have only got worse.”
Thankful to have his health back, Ben is now supporting The Brain Tumour Charity in their new campaign Better Safe Than Tumour, which aims to highlight the symptoms of brain tumours in both children and adults.
Dr David Jenkinson, Chief Scientific Officer at The Brain Tumour Charity, which funds world-class research and provides trusted support for anyone affected by the disease, said: “We’re really grateful to Ben for supporting this campaign by sharing his story.
“With over 10,000 people diagnosed with a brain tumour in England every year, it is absolutely vital that we support more people to know what to look out for and to get anything concerning checked out by their GP.
“The symptoms of the disease vary from person to person but the most common symptoms amongst adults include headaches, changes to vision, seizures, dizziness, memory problems, nausea and fatigue.”
Anyone who is worried about a symptom which is unusual for them, or experiences a persistent combination of these symptoms, is encouraged to see their GP to help rule out a brain tumour.
For more information visit www.headsmart.org.uk.
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