Southsea woman to walk 65 miles around the Isle of Wight in 24 hours in memory of mum who died of cancer

A SOUTHSEA woman is preparing to walk more than 65 miles around the coastline of the Isle of Wight to raise cash in memory of her mum who died of an aggressive brain tumour.
By Fiona Callingham
Published 4th Feb 2022, 15:28 GMT
Updated 4th Feb 2022, 15:30 GMT
32-year-old Heidi Clevett, from Southsea, will be walking the Isle of Wight coast this April in memory of her mother, Elaine Clevett, from Littlehampton. Pictured Heidi, Ivy and Elaine. 32-year-old Heidi Clevett, from Southsea, will be walking the Isle of Wight coast this April in memory of her mother, Elaine Clevett, from Littlehampton. Pictured Heidi, Ivy and Elaine.
32-year-old Heidi Clevett, from Southsea, will be walking the Isle of Wight coast this April in memory of her mother, Elaine Clevett, from Littlehampton. Pictured Heidi, Ivy and Elaine.

Mum-of-one Heidi Clevett will take on the solo hike this April in just 24 hours with all donations going to charity Brain Tumour Research after Elaine Clevett, from Littlehampton, died just four months after being diagnosed with a glioblastoma multiforme.

Family and friends first noticed the always chatty Elaine ‘acting strange’ and appearing quieter than usual during her granddaughter Ivy’s second birthday celebrations.

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Elaine Clevett, from Littlehampton, who died aged 60 of a brain tumourElaine Clevett, from Littlehampton, who died aged 60 of a brain tumour
Elaine Clevett, from Littlehampton, who died aged 60 of a brain tumour
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A week later a CT scan revealed Elaine had a tumour on her brain the size of an apple and would need an operation.

Vessel traffic manager at the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, Heidi, 32, said: ‘Mum kept forgetting where we were and the reason why; she was really confused. Hearing the diagnosis was a huge shock and made even harder because my mum couldn’t comprehend what was going on.’

Elaine was given a course of steroids to reduce the swelling on her brain, caused by a build-up of fluid. Her symptoms continued to worsen and she lost her short-term memory.

Six weeks after her symptoms first started, Elaine had a craniotomy at Brighton Hospital and was in surgery for four hours. Surgeons noticed the tumour had spread to both hemispheres of her brain.

32-year-old Heidi Clevett, from Southsea, will be walking the Isle of Wight coast this April in memory of her mother, Elaine Clevett, from Littlehampton. 32-year-old Heidi Clevett, from Southsea, will be walking the Isle of Wight coast this April in memory of her mother, Elaine Clevett, from Littlehampton.
32-year-old Heidi Clevett, from Southsea, will be walking the Isle of Wight coast this April in memory of her mother, Elaine Clevett, from Littlehampton.
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Immediately after surgery, Elaine suffered a bleed on the brain which caused her to have a stroke and she was rushed back into theatre, where surgeons removed the remaining tumour, unavoidably taking with it many healthy cells.

This led to a five-day coma and she was moved to a nursing home near to her husband Dave for palliative care. Elaine died on December 1, 2021, having survived 15 days with no food or water.

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Now Heidi is keen to raise as much money as possible to help others. The vessel traffic manager said: ‘What happened to my mum didn’t seem fair and I want to be able to put my mind to something positive.

‘Research on this type of cancer is extremely difficult, in part due to only 25 per cent of glioblastoma patients surviving more than one year. More research is desperately needed to understand this illness better – there is currently very little understanding of the disease, no understanding of the cause and minimal treatment options available to those afflicted.’

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To donate to Heidi’s fundraising challenge, go to justgiving.com/fundraising/heidi-clevett.

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