A mum who thought she had an ear infection was shocked to find out she actually had a brain tumour - and can no longer cry from her right eye. Sue Hitchmough, 48, went to the doctors after suffering from minor hearing loss in her right ear and dizziness.
She was initially told she had an ear infection and prescribed antibiotics. After taking a course of the tablets, Sue wasn’t getting any better - and started to experience problems with swallowing.
She spent nearly a year attributing her health issues to “overdoing it at the gym” and was finally diagnosed with a low-grade acoustic neuroma - a type of brain tumour - in September 2021. Sue had her first operation to remove the 3.5cm tumour in February 2022 and needs a lifelong shunt in her brain to drain the fluid caused by the tumour.
She is now completely deaf in one ear, has lost the ability to cry in her right eye and has lost taste on one side. She needs a permanent tube in her head called a shunt - which works by draining excess fluid from the brain - which can be absorbed in the blood or into the stomach.
Her latest surgery - to tie up the tube on her shunt as doctors feared more fluid than needed was being released - was just one month ago, in January 2023. Sue, a managing director, from Burleson, Hampshire, said: “I used to wake up during the night with the sensation of a tablet stuck in my throat.
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“I found myself making excuses for everything my body was feeling. I’d think that perhaps I was overdoing it at the gym and not eating enough.
“My life changed as soon as I heard the words ‘brain tumour’." Sue was shocked when she was diagnosed with the brain tumour - after thinking she had an ear infection and put her symptoms down to her busy lifestyle through the pandemic.
She has since had three surgeries and lives with a permanent shunt in her head to drain a build-up of fluid on her brain - caused by her tumour. Sue said: "I lost my aunt to the disease when I was a young teenager, she was 40.
“I wondered if it could be hereditary, and if so, were my children at risk? When I asked, the consultant advised they didn’t know what caused them. It was just ‘one of those things. I did my own research into brain tumours and was alarmed with how little is known about the disease.”
Sue wants to help other people with same type of brain tumour and has set up an Instagram account where she regularly posts information about her surgeries and health updates, as well as motivational quotes. Now trying to get back to normal life, she has volunteered to do a charity firewalk for Brain Tumour Research.
She’ll take to the 800-degree coals at The Horton Inn, Wimbourne on March 9. Mel Tiley, community development manager at Brain Tumour Research, said: “We’re grateful to Sue for sharing her story with us. It reminds us that brain tumours are indiscriminate - they can affect anyone at any age.
“We have firewalks taking place all over the country and are delighted to bring this event to people who want to join the #FightingForce to help find a cure for this disease. We wish Sue and all the participants the best of luck in what promises to be a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
