21-year-old Leicester City fan Isaac Wilton's life changed when a seizure during a gym session in April 2024 led to the diagnosis of a grade 4 glioblastoma, an aggressive brain tumour with a typical survival rate of 12 to 18 months. Despite this, Isaac has focused on hope, undergoing surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy while pursuing experimental immunotherapy, a costly but promising treatment not available on the NHS. His family, friends, and community have helped raise over £190,000 through events like charity walks and football matches to fund this treatment. Isaac credits the unwavering support of his loved ones for keeping him strong and hopes his journey inspires greater awareness of glioblastoma research and treatment accessibility.
Isaac tells his story…
At my age, you hear stories about diseases like this, but you don’t expect them to become part of your life. You think it’s almost mythical, something that happens to other people. When you’re young, healthy, and feeling fine, it’s hard to imagine that one day everything could change so drastically.
For me, it all started on a normal, typical day. I’ve always loved sports and keeping fit, so in April 2024, I went to the gym feeling perfectly fine. Out of the blue, during my workout, I experienced a seizure. It was terrifying, I didn’t know what was happening.
The next thing I know, I’m lying in a hospital bed where CT and MRI scans have discovered a fatal mass in my head.
Initially, the medical staff at Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham thought it wasn’t serious because the tumour didn’t appear to be diffuse. However, they couldn’t be certain until they performed a biopsy. While I tried to stay hopeful, the uncertainty was overwhelming.
In May 2024, I underwent surgery to debulk the tumour. The operation was deemed successful, with the surgeons managing to remove most of it. For a moment, I felt an enormous sense of relief. But that relief was short-lived. A few weeks later, the biopsy results came back:
It was a grade 4 glioblastoma, an aggressive brain tumour with an average survival rate of just 12 to 18 months.
I never thought this could happen to me at just 21 years old. It was devastating, especially after being told the surgery had gone well. Still, I’ve chosen to focus on my youth as a positive factor in this fight. Staying positive isn’t just about hope; it’s about keeping sane through what feels like a bizarre twist of fate.
Following the diagnosis, I began chemotherapy (temozolomide pills) and radiotherapy to keep the tumour at bay. Glioblastomas are notorious for regrowing, so I know these treatments won’t be effective forever. But they’re giving me a fighting chance to hold on until a better solution comes along.
Given there is no cure for glioblastoma right now, I’m relying on clinical trials and immunotherapy treatment for hope.
When doctors are using phrases like “the medication they can give” and “the treatments they prescribe aren’t going to be curative”, it’s only human to search for other options that could beat this thing. That’s when we discovered immunotherapy, a treatment which uses a tumour to create a vaccine that trains the immune system to fight back against the cancer as it regrows. It’s a groundbreaking and promising treatment but it isn’t offered on the NHS and is incredibly expensive.
My sister Harriet has been a massive help to fundraise for this. She set up a Just Giving page to fundraise for immunotherapy, and thanks to the generosity of friends, family, and the wider community, we’ve raised over £190,000.
We’ve organised various activities to support the cause, including charity football matches and community events. One highlight was a group walk last October, where family and friends joined me to walk from Leicester City Football Club to Coalville Clock Tower. It was an incredible experience, seeing so many people rallying around me.
I’m a big believer in remaining positive throughout everything. You can’t go through life just looking at statistics because it’ll just get you down in the dumps. Focusing on finding a treatment that could work, and the support from my family, friends, and girlfriend, Caitin, have kept me going in this really trying time in my life.
I am fighting for my life, and I will win.
Isaac Wilton
January 2025
One in three people in the UK knows someone affected by a brain tumour. This disease is indiscriminate; it can affect anyone at any age. What’s more, brain tumours continue to kill more children and adults under the age of 40 than any other cancer yet, to date, just 1% of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to this devastating disease since records began in 2002.
Brain Tumour Research is determined to change this.
If you have been inspired by Isaac’s story, you may like to make a donation via www.braintumourresearch.org/donate or leave a gift in your will via www.braintumourresearch.org/legacy
Together we will find a cure.