Brain tumour patient's plea for 'tragic condition'

Maxine Wrathall (second from left) has raised more than £7,000 for Brain Tumour Research

A former brain tumour patient is calling on the government to fulfil a 2018 pledge to invest £40m into research for the "tragic" condition.

Maxine Wrathall, 45, from Swindon, Wiltshire, was a busy mum-of-two when she started to experience headaches and had a sudden seizure at work in November 2022.

Scans revealed a dormant meningioma, a type of brain tumour, which had been growing for years and required urgent surgery.

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson: “We are backing brain cancer research with £40m of investment, and working closely with the patient and researcher communities on this."

The National Institute for Health and Care Research said it has launched "two new calls" for brain tumour research part as of the government’s commitment to developing new lifesaving and life-improving research.

Since the operation, Ms Wrathall has been left with cognitive and memory issues but also a determination to help others with the disease.

She said: "Before my operation, I saw a seven-year-old boy being readied for surgery. That’s when I knew, whatever happened, I was one of the lucky ones.

"More children are affected by brain tumours than any other cancer, yet just 1% of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to brain tumours since records began in 2002. It’s tragic.”

Ms Wrathall at hospital in the neurosurgery unit

The cafe owner has raised more than £7,000 for Brain Tumour Research with a number of fundraising initiatives, most recently taking part in the Cardiff Half Marathon on 6 October.

“I’m just grateful to be alive,” said Ms Wrathall. “Now I look at life in a new light, with a certain detachment from the things that used to bother me before.

"I don’t understand why the government isn’t doing more to tackle a disease that is so devastating, and affects so many children in particular.”

She has been taking part in a range of fundraising missions including a 274-mile cycling challenge

In 2018, the then Conservative government pledged £40m for brain cancer research, in honour of Labour peer Dame Tessa Jowell who died from the disease that year.

The mother-of-two has supported Brain Tumour Research as it calls for the Labour government to fulfil this pledge.

Louise Aubrey, community development manager at Brain Tumour Research, said: “Since the government promise was made, a little over 25% of the money has ended up in the hands of the researchers. This is unacceptable.

“We are so grateful to Maxine for her continued support for the cause.

"Her inspirational fundraising efforts have paid for almost three full days of research at one of our Centres of Excellence, an invaluable contribution to the mission to find a cure.”

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson added: "We know that innovative research is vital in our fight against this devastating disease, to ensure people are offered the most cutting-edge treatments and the highest quality care.

"We have recently launched two new calls for research into brain tumour treatment and care as part of our efforts to develop new life-saving and life-enhancing treatments.”