Football fan and skilled Volvo technician, Graham Stuart McKie, affectionately known as “Hedgie”, was a loving, caring son, brother, uncle, husband, and friend from Milngavie, Scotland. The 32-year-old became very unwell very quickly on Boxing Day evening, 2005, with severe headaches and continued sickness while out with his wife and her family. This lasted several days. Graham later received a terminal diagnosis of an inoperable and incurable glioblastoma grade 4 brain tumour. He faced his illness with courage, determination and strength, enduring radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and complications along the way. He died peacefully seven months later on 11 August 2006, with his heartbroken and devastated family by his bedside. Since then, Clan McKie has raised over £50,000 for brain tumour-related causes in tribute to Graham.
Here is Graham’s story, as told by his parents, Don and Rachel…
Graham was our first-born child and only son. He became the big brother to Sharyn and Jaclyn. From a very young age, Graham loved life and cars. He had a strong bond with his siblings, and they shared many wonderful adventures and happy memories growing up together, being nicknamed the Clan McKie.
Two of Graham’s greatest joys were his love of football and music. He was a big follower of both Aberdeen FC and Manchester United, with Sir Alex Ferguson at the helm. He also had a natural talent for cars, and at age 16, he became a motor mechanic and later a fully qualified Volvo technician. He took great pride in his work, and his attention to detail made him exceptional at what he did.
It was in December 2005 when everything changed. We had just spent a wonderful Christmas Day together as a family, with our first grandchild Jack, Jaclyn’s son, and newly engaged daughter Sharyn and fiancé Peter. But on Boxing Day evening, while out with his wife and her family for dinner, Graham began experiencing severe headaches and sickness that didn’t seem to subside. In the following few days, we visited two local hospitals and saw three doctors in Coatbridge, where he lived at the time with his wife, as the surgeries were all closed for the festive season. The doctors kept saying that it was a severe migraine and prescribed painkillers but never investigated further. The sickness abated a bit, but his headaches refused to go away. His aunt used to have migraines, so I knew what they were like, and as his mum, I also sensed at that time that it was something more severe, but didn’t know what!
We resorted to visiting our trusted family GP, Dr. Goldthorp, who agreed that something was seriously wrong and sent Graham to the Western Infirmary in Glasgow. He remained there overnight for tests carried out by a family friend, Professor Kenneth McColl, who thankfully happened to be on duty that evening. What a blessing that was for Graham, seeing a friendly face after being so unwell for several days and not knowing what was going on, as he was a very healthy young man and kept fit playing 5-a-side football weekly with his friends. Kenneth spoke to him and had him transferred to the Southern General Hospital the following morning, which deals with head traumas. He had to undergo emergency surgery to relieve fluid buildup in his brain. The surgery went well, and they were able to do a biopsy, having to wait several days for the result. We remember being in a small room in the hospital when a young doctor came in to confirm our worst fears: Graham had a grade 4 glioblastoma, an aggressive and cancerous brain tumour.
The doctors told us that if there were any family events happening, we should bring them forward for Graham. They explained that there were no guarantees that any treatments would help, but they recommended radiotherapy and chemotherapy to slow the growth of the tumour. Graham was determined to fight, and although we were all devastated, we knew he wouldn’t give up easily.
From 1 February through 16 March 2006, Graham started the first of his 30 rounds of radiotherapy, along with one round of chemotherapy, which came in the form of green pills. The radiotherapy was intended to shrink the tumour or slow its growth, while the chemotherapy was meant to kill off any remaining cancer cells. This happened at the Beatson Centre, then at the Western Infirmary, where Professor Roy Rampling, Dr. Alan James and their team took amazing care of him. We can’t thank them enough for all their care, not only to Graham, but also for us as his heartbroken family going through this with him.
During his treatment, Graham’s strength, calmness, peace of mind, and resilience amazed us all. Despite the side effects – nausea, fatigue, and hair loss – he kept his positive attitude. Dr. Rampling said Graham was doing really well and didn’t think he’d need to see him again for a few months. By this time, as his parents, we felt we were on a speeding train that we couldn’t get off, being carried along not knowing what time we had to share with our son. His sisters felt the same. Our strong faith upheld us then, and continues to do so, knowing one day we will be reunited with Graham. 2nd Samuel 12 v 23b says "He cannot return to us, but one day we shall go to be with him.” This was something he was aware of in his Christian upbringing.
He was kept on oxygen for two days before they allowed him to come home. After that episode, he went in another two times, the last being on 24 July for dehydration, before he became so unwell that he wasn’t able to take his medication anymore. The medicine and blood thinners had taken their toll on him, and he had gained weight because of it.
Having recovered sufficiently on 7 May 2006, Graham was the main usher at his sister Sharyn’s wedding, which had been brought forward so that Graham could be there. As his family, we were all so very proud of the way he handled himself that day, especially leading his mum down the aisle to her seat.
On 8 August 2006, Graham was able to see his one-year-old nephew Jack walk toward him as he lay in his hospital bed at the Southern General, giving a thumbs-up and a big smile. We so miss his wonderful smile!
On 26 July, having become so unwell, and with time being precious, we went to live with him until, on the afternoon of 11 August, 2006, just seven months after his diagnosis, Graham died peacefully at the young age of 32, in the old Southern General Hospital, with us all by his bedside. We had hoped for more time, but we took comfort in knowing that Graham had fought so bravely and maintained his quiet, peaceful spirit until the very end. He is sorely missed from our lives and will never be forgotten.
After Graham’s death, we were determined to keep his memory alive as we had promised him, inspired by a hope that no family would have to endure what we went through, and continue to go through. We began fundraising, and our first event, held on 28 October 2006 in our church, raised £7,000 which was donated to the Cancer Research UK Scotland Institute at the Garscube Estate, Glasgow. Since then, we’ve worked tirelessly, organising bake sales, silent auctions, and community events, taking part in the Glasgow Kilt Walk, various other sponsored walks, and bucket collections. To date, we’ve raised over £50,000, and our commitment to finding a cure for this dreadful disease and raising awareness of it has only grown stronger with time.
While we are aware no amount of money can bring Graham back, we know that the funds and awareness we raise will help further research into brain tumours and could prevent other families from experiencing the pain we continue to feel. We are proud to support Brain Tumour Research and the new Scottish Brain Tumour Research Centre of Excellence, which will focus on glioblastoma research. It gives us hope that one day, a cure will be found, and future generations won’t have to face the same devastating prognosis that Graham did.
Rachel and Don McKie
December 2024
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 touched by Graham’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