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Girl's Eye Test Reveals Deadly Brain Tumor
1 Sep
Summary
- A five-year-old was diagnosed with a brain tumor hours after an eye test.
- Symptoms of sickness and headaches were initially mistaken for migraines.
- Phoebe now attends school and raises awareness for brain tumor research.
A five-year-old girl, Phoebe Carpenter, received a devastating brain tumor diagnosis just 12 hours after visiting an optician for an eye test. This came after months of her experiencing sickness and severe headaches, which medical professionals had repeatedly misidentified as migraines.
Her mother, Katie Nicholls, kept a record of Phoebe's declining health, prompting the optician visit. This led to an emergency trip to Addenbrooke's Hospital, where scans revealed the tumor. Phoebe underwent surgery to remove most of the tumor, a pilocystic astrocytoma, and had a drain inserted to manage cerebrospinal fluid buildup.
Remarkably, Phoebe has recovered quickly and returned to school, albeit with strong glasses due to vision changes. Her family is immensely grateful that she did not require chemotherapy or radiotherapy. Phoebe and Katie are now collaborating with Brain Tumour Research to advocate for greater government funding for research into the disease.
