When GPs told 14-year-old Charlie Thompson his persistent headaches and dizziness were caused by vertigo and bad posture while gaming online, the youngster could not have imagined the far more sinister truth.
Yet when Charlie, from Staffordshire, was rushed to A&E by his father after his pain was so severe that it caused nausea and vomiting – it was clear that simply slouching was not the root cause.
In fact, more than one year after his first complaint of a sore head, Charlie and his family were dealt a catastrophic blow – the teenager had not one, but two, fast-growing cancerous tumours located in the middle of his brain.
Known as medulloblastoma, it is the second most commonly diagnosed brain tumour variation in children, with approximately 52 cases per year.
However, the odds of having two separate, primary masses like Charlie has makes up just one per cent of occurrences.
In the space of only one month, Charlie had emergency surgery on the larger tumour and was told he must begin a 12-month-long treatment plan including chemotherapy and specialised radiotherapy in Birmingham and Manchester.
For Charlie’s family, including dad Ashley Thompson, 44, this will mean expensive travel to-and-from numerous appointments, costly hotel stays and providing other essentials to make his son comfortable.
To accommodate the escalating expenses, Mr Thompson – who is a bricklayer by trade – has set up a GoFundMe to raise the £5,000 needed, after taking a short hiatus from work to take care of Charlie.
For football-lover Charlie Thompson, the hope is he will be able to live a ‘normal life’ after treatment
Charlie was told by GPs his persistent headaches and dizziness were caused by vertigo and bad posture while online gaming – when in fact, he had two brain tumours
Speaking to the Daily Mail, Mr Thompson candidly discussed the ‘shock’ of his son’s diagnosis after key symptoms were missed by doctors – but how every penny counts toward his son’s journey back to full health.
Mr Thompson said: ‘Around one year ago, Charlie said he was feeling dizzy playing football. I took him to the GP then – they said it was vertigo.
‘He was given some exercises to do, but a few months later he was still complaining of headaches. My mum took him to a doctor again, and they said the headaches were bad posture from gaming.
‘At that time, there was nothing to say that the tumour wasn’t there or that these symptoms were not linked – but it seemed a bit of a coincidence to me, especially when he had been suffering from dizzy spells for a while.’
It was not until May this year, that Mr Thompson said things took a turn for the worst after Charlie’s headaches began to cause severe nausea and vomiting – symptoms he said were still brushed off by GPs with anti-sickness medication.
He said: ‘Towards the end of May, we went to the GP. Charlie’s headaches had got a lot worse and he wasn’t eating. That was my main worry – he wasn’t eating and he was throwing up.
‘So I took him to the GP. They said it was a stomach bug and put him on anti-sickness tablets.
‘However, Charlie did not get any better that weekend – I was so concerned that I called an ambulance one evening, but for whatever reason, they booked us in for a doctor’s appointment the next day instead.
Charlie, pictured with dad Ashley Thompson, has had emergency surgery on his larger tumour and will begin 12 months of treatment including chemotherapy and radiotherapy
‘The GP then again told us his condition was likely to be a persistent stomach bug. I still wasn’t happy with this, and I took him to A&E as he was not eating.’
It was there, Mr Thompson said, that Charlie began a series of coordination tests and eventually, had a CT scan which showed fluid and what appeared to be ‘solid tissue’ on his brain.
Charlie was quickly referred to Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham at the beginning of June, where testing confirmed his father’s worst fears.
Mr Thompson said: ‘Charlie was booked in for an MRI on June 3 – that was when they found his first tumour.
‘He was then put in for surgery on June 9, but subsequent scans showed another tumour, which was a little further up his brain and hard to get to.
‘We then got the medulloblastoma diagnosis shortly afterwards. Both tumours are medollablastomas. One is a little smaller than the other – and that brings us to now.
‘Right now, it is something that we can deal with, but Charlie will be quite poorly along the way.’
Medulloblastoma is a high-grade tumour most commonly found in children, though few cases have been recorded in adults.
The tumour develops at the back of the brain in an area known as the cerebellum and often spreads to other areas of the brain and spinal cord through cerebrospinal fluid (CSF).
The standard treatment plan for this type of cancer is a combination of surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy.
Luckily, the survival rate for medulloblastoma is high relative to other brain tumours – with approximately 80 per cent of children living beyond five years after diagnosis.
But despite the positive prognosis, Mr Thompson said he is ‘disappointed’ his son’s brain tumour was not found sooner by GPs – especially considering his son presented with textbook symptoms like headaches, dizziness and no appetite.
He said: ‘In all honesty I am a little disappointed about it, and it does make me wonder if it could have been found earlier and if it would have made it any better.
‘I am no medical expert, but I have seen the scans and it looked like quite a large lump to me. So, it just makes me wonder how long it has been there, and the new one, which is smaller.
‘I think it could have been there a while, and it could have been spotted earlier.’
Charlie’s GP practice, Balance Street Health Centre in Uttoxeter, has been contacted for comment.
A GoFundMe has since been created to raise funds toward financing Charlie’s care, with a goal of £5,000 to cover all costs
Now, Mr Thompson and Charlie are looking ahead to what doctors say will be between six to 12 months of treatments, including radiation and chemotherapy to, if successful, cure his cancer.
Charlie will undergo specialised proton beam therapy at the Christie Hospital in Manchester within the next few weeks – one of only two locations in Britain that offers this.
He will then start chemotherapy at Birmingham Children’s Hospital later this year.
On his treatments, Mr Thompson said: ‘After the surgery to remove the tumour, Charlie was unsteady on his feet and did not do a lot at all in the first few days.
‘But he is trying to do basic things again now. He’s been visited by physiotherapists, and is doing exercises – trying to stand on one leg and things like that.
‘He’s a long way off – it’s looking like six to 12 months, we were told, of treatment between Manchester and Birmingham.
‘He must start radiotherapy within six weeks of finishing surgery – so that is within the next three weeks, right now. I am hoping we will soon have a date to go to Manchester to start the radiation.’
And in preparation for their son’s intensive treatment plan, Mr Thompson has made significant sacrifices of his own.
He has been out of work since May to care full-time for his son – an unfortunate financial strain for his family.
A GoFundMe has since been created to raise funds toward financing Charlie’s care, with a goal of £5,000 to cover all costs. So far, it has raised just over £3,700.
Mr Thompson said: ‘I have not worked since May, so the fundraiser is to help with things Charlie needs. Benefits are not very forthcoming, but Charlie’s trips are a necessity.
‘Without the fundraiser, we’d be pretty knackered.’
Writing on GoFundMe, Charlie’s family say every donation will ‘make a real difference’.
They said: ‘Charlie will soon begin treatment in Manchester and Birmingham, including chemotherapy and radiotherapy, meaning regular travel and time away from home.
‘As a result, household income will be reduced at a time when travel and everyday expenses are increasing, leaving the family under significant financial pressure. We’re hoping to ease some of that burden so they can focus on what matters most – Charlie.
‘The money raised will help with travel, accommodation, fuel, meals, household bills, and other essential expenses during Charlie’s treatment.’
