HR manager, 26, found to have incurable brain tumour after her headaches and seizures were put down to low iron levels says she’s ‘determined to live for as long as she can’ as she fundraises for specialist treatment in Germany costing £100,000

• Paige Gould’s fiancé discovered the treatment could give a second chance at life
• After the former HR manager was diagnosed in December she had surgery
• But as tumour is grade four the doctors think it will return in the next few years 
• Her own father died of a brain tumour at 38, when she was just six years old

A 26-year-old former HR manager found out that she has an incurable brain tumour after her headaches and seizures were initially put down to low iron levels.

Paige Gould from Bishop’s Stortford, Hertfordshire is ‘determined to live for as long as she can’ as she fundraisers for specialist treatment, costing £100,000. 

In December her life ‘flipped upside down’ after doctors initially thought she had a low iron count due to her headaches and seizures before realising she has Stage Four glioblastoma multiforme. 

Known as a ‘fast-growing and aggressive’ tumour, which has a survival time of 12 to 18 months, it previously killed her father, Mark, at 38 when she was six-year-old. 

And though she has had surgery to remove it, she told the BBC ‘it is almost guaranteed to return and normally does so within the first couple of years’. 

Her fiancé, Taylor Allen, had been desperately trying to find medical options for Paige when he found her ‘second chance at life’ and the ‘glimmer of hope’ she needed in Germany. 

Paige Gould from Bishop’s Stortford, Hertfordshire is ‘determined to live for as long as she can’ as she fundraisers for specialist treatment in Germany, costing £100,000

Her fiancé, Taylor Allen (the couple pictured), had been desperately trying to find medical options for Paige when he found her ‘second chance at life’ and the ‘glimmer of hope’ she needed

She did have surgery (her scar, pictured) to remove the ‘fast-growing and aggressive’ tumour but doctors warn it may come back 

Originally from Dunmow, Essex, doctors at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge found the tumour on her left frontal lobe last year when she was 25. 

And she has so far had brain surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy and IVF treatment to freeze her eggs. 

‘Hearing [the news of the tumour] was extremely disheartening for my family and I,’ she added. 

She also cannot drive and has been forced to stop working. ‘I know that with my amazing family and friends by my side I can get through this,’ she said. ‘I am determined to do so for them.’

 Doctors at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge found the tumour on her left frontal lobe last year when she was 25, pictured her (left) and with partner (on right)

Glioblastoma multiforme has a survival time of 12 to 18 months, and previously killed her father, Mark, at 38 when she was six-year-old

A quarter of Glioblastoma multiforme patients survive more than a year, research says 

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is a ‘fast-growing common type of tumour’ that is located in the brain or spinal cord. 

Brain Tumour Research says they can be ‘very challenging to treat because of their complex nature’ and average survival time is devastatingly short – just 12-18 months.

However, 25% of glioblastoma patients survive more than one year and 5% of patients survive more than five years. 

Less than 1% of all patients with a glioblastoma live for more than ten years, so in the majority of cases, it is fatal. 

 Source: Brain Tumour Research UK

Her brother, while fundraising for brain cancer research, also said: ‘Paige is currently going through treatment, and for someone so young showing so much fight and belief, it is truly my inspiration to do my bit. I know she is going to kick cancers’ a**.’

Writing about her condition online to raise funds, Paige said: ‘I was diagnosed with an incurable brain tumour, the same tumour which sadly killed my father in June of 2000. 

‘Although the NHS has been incredible, due to this being a Grade 4 tumour, it’s almost guaranteed to return. Sadly it seems that the Standard of Care provided by the NHS isn’t enough to beat this disease, so we have had to start exploring alternative options.

‘After months of research and many consultations, we have found groundbreaking treatment in Germany which could give me a second chance at life.

‘Sadly this treatment is very expensive, so we have no option but to do everything we can as a family to raise the money and get me this extremely important treatment which I desperately need.

‘The treatment is essentially a personalised vaccine made from parts of my tumour which will help my immune system to recognise the foreign cancer cells and destroy them. 

‘Luckily, I have some favourable mutations in my tumour, which should make this treatment even more effective, which is why we are so certain this is the best avenue to go down.’

Her partner Taylor also told the BBC: ‘Paige has handled this so well. There are tough days and she sometimes cries, but she is very positive and she has given us so much strength by the way she has reacted to this.’

Source: Read Full Article