A supporter from Kent, who is living with a vestibular schwannoma brain tumour, is cycling 274 miles this month to raise much-needed funding for research into the disease.
John Starns, from Sutton Valence, was on his way to work in central London in February 2022 when he suddenly felt unwell and got off the train at Sevenoaks. He spent the next two hours slumped and sweating on a bench, as commuters walked by unaware that he was showing symptoms of a brain tumour.
John, 63, said: “It felt as though I was having a panic attack. I was disorientated and it became difficult to walk. I found a bench and sat there for two hours, alone. No-one approached me, I suspect because they thought I was drunk.”
John, pictured above with wife Phillipa, was initially told he had vertigo but when there was no improvement with medication, an MRI scan three months later revealed the truth.
“It was a scary process, the MRI and hearing the words ‘brain tumour’, but I will never forget the emotional release when the nurse told me my tumour was benign,” said the freelance photographer.
More than three years on, John, a keen cyclist, is monitored with scans every two years which show that his tumour is stable. Now he has taken on Cycle 274 Miles in August, a month-long fundraiser to help support the work taking place at our Research Centres of Excellence.
John helped to further shine a light on the disease that kills more men under 70 than prostate cancer, by sharing his story on the lunchtime and evening news programme for BBC South East Today alongside our Director of Research, Policy and Innovation, Dr Karen Noble. He also featured in The Mirror, BBC News and Kent Live.
John said: “My story could have ended differently. That’s the reality for others. My hope is that by supporting Brain Tumour Research, more people will benefit from the advances in research.”
You can donate to Brain Tumour Research via John’s Cycle 274 Miles in August challenge and bring hope to all those affected by clicking here.
