A mum who went for an eye test at Specsavers was shocked when the optician referred her straight to hospital.
Ann Flinn, 54, from Haydock, was shopping for new sunglasses ahead of a long weekend in Benidorm, when an optician discovered an abnormality while testing her eyes. The mum-of-two was immediately referred to hospital for further tests due to a swelling on her optic nerve.
An MRI scan revealed Ann had a form of brain tumour that had swelled to the size of a "big grape." Ann said she felt "sheer shock" when she was told of the discovery, as she'd had not even the slightest indication anything was wrong and "felt fine."
READ MORE: Wheelchair user told 'go to pharmacy' after vital luggage lost during Easyjet flight
Ann said: "It came as a shock to me. I needed new sunglasses for my holiday to Benidorm and needed a test because I'd gone two years [since the last one].
"I went for an MRI scan and they found a tumour, I had swelling on the brain which was causing swelling on the optic nerve. The radiographer said 'I think it's a meningioma but I can't be certain. Either way the consultant has said that you need to go straight to the hospital'.
"It was just sheer shock but I felt fine as I didn't have any symptoms. I saw the pictures and I'd say it was probably the size of a big grape.
"At that stage they were more concerned about the swelling because that was bigger and spread further over my brain than it should have been for that particular type of tumour."
"The eye test potentially saved my life because anything could have happened and if not saved my life, certainly saved my vision. I wouldn't have known [about the tumour] otherwise, because of the swelling I was in danger of having seizures."
Weeks after the discovery, on Friday, July 29, Ann underwent surgery to remove the tumour. The mum was told in August that her tumour was benign. Just a week after the MRI scan detected the tumour, she had surgery to remove it at The Walton Centre in Liverpool.
Ann said: "I was terrified. I'm a very optimistic person and quite a strong female. These things didn't faze me at all and at one point I was so zen you would have thought I was on a different planet.
"It was about three days after surgery that it dawned on me how serious this thing was and what I'd just been through. I've got a long road of recovery, it's going to take around 12 months for me to get back to normal."
Ann donned her new shades while on her trip to Spain in June before her surgery to remove the tumour, which left her with a black eye and seven-inch scar across her scalp.
She said: "But people are quite shocked at how well I look considering the style of surgery I've had and how severe it was. I've pretty much just got on as normal as best as I can."
After her terrifying ordeal, Ann was keen to warn people about the dangers of putting off routine tests like her eye test. She said: "I was warned that it could be cancerous, because of where it was they were 90% sure that it was the meningioma but there could be a possibility that it's not. It came back as benign, which was fabulous news.
"Don't put these things off. Us women, we do it all the time. I know some of my friends who are my age who are still putting off smear tests and you think 'don't be ridiculous'.
"It's not going to kill you, just go and get it done. Eye tests are not as trivial as people seem to think. They are important."
Giles Edmonds, clinical services director at Specsavers, said: "Ann’s story highlights why a routine eye test, every two years, is so important. Many people believe that eye tests are just for people who need – or might need – glasses, but they’re so much more than that.
"They give insight into your overall general health. In rare cases, like Ann’s, they can detect serious health concerns, but they can also detect conditions like type two diabetes, high blood pressure or glaucoma.
"Incidents like this demonstrates how important an advanced your eye examination is."
READ NEXT:
Gun shots fired through window of a house
Army bomb disposal team called after 'suspicious items' found on train tracks
'Gentle' mum and son found dead in Sefton Park flat are 'both at peace now'
Neighbours 'on edge' after mum's loud nights of sexual activity
DWP Universal Credit will give four groups of claimants cash boost from this week
