Home / Health / Ex-Leeds Star's Shock Brain Tumour Discovery
Ex-Leeds Star's Shock Brain Tumour Discovery
4 Feb
Summary
- Dominic Matteo trained hours before emergency brain tumour surgery.
- He played his entire football career with a dormant brain tumour.
- Matteo relearned basic skills like reading and writing post-surgery.
Dominic Matteo, former captain for Leeds United, shared his experience of undergoing emergency surgery for a brain tumour. The operation took place in November 2019 at Leeds General Infirmary, just hours after he had completed a gym workout. Matteo discovered he had lived his entire football career with anaplastic ependymoma, a type of brain tumour, which had been lying dormant.
His diagnosis came after experiencing changes in his eyesight and a moment of disorientation during a football match broadcast. A subsequent health check led to his collapse during an MRI scan, prompting immediate surgical intervention. Surgeon Ryan Mathew successfully removed the tumour, followed by radiotherapy to eliminate any remaining cancer cells.
Matteo's recovery was arduous, including a four to five-week hospital stay. He faced significant cognitive challenges, needing to relearn basic skills such as reading and writing, and lost sight in his right eye. Despite these difficulties, he remains positive and emphasizes the importance of research into rare brain tumours, like that of Professor Susan Short.
