Woman diagnosed with brain tumour after impromptu eye test to abseil down Spinnaker Tower for cancer charity

Adele Wise, 52, is marking nearly a decade since her surgery by raising money for Brain Tumour Research. She decided to have an eye test after experiencing ‘floaters’ in her vision and noticing that her sight was deteriorating.

Ms Wise, 41 at the time, booked a test at Vision Express in Tesco North Harbour during her weekly food shop in 2013. The optician immediately noticed an anomaly behind her left eye and immediately referred her to Queen Alexandra Hospital.

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Scans shockingly revealed Ms Wise had a pituitary tumour, with medical experts performing a neuroendoscopy on June 17 to remove it. Ms Wise has recovered since and nowhas 20/20 vision at the age of 52. She said she feels ‘lucky’ that it was a low grade brain tumour despite the surprise diagnosis.

The employer engagement advisor at The University of Portsmouth said: ‘After the scan at hospital I went back to the opticians to thank them for potentially saving my life. I saw an image of my tumour which looked quite big.

‘Had it been left longer, because of where it was growing, my body would have slowly shut down. I feel lucky with the fact mine wasn’t cancerous.

‘The first thing I said when I woke up after surgery was “I’m alive”. It was like my body rebooted and over the last decade I have made sure to look after myself, not taking my recovery for granted.’

Ms Wise is performing the 100 metre descent on Saturday, April 22 and is looking forward to it despite being scared of heights. ‘I always reflect on the anniversary of both my diagnosis and operation,’ she added.

‘This year I wanted to do something completely out of my comfort zone for such a significant anniversary. I’m petrified of heights so this will be huge for me.

‘I can see the tower across the bay from the end of my road. Once I have done the abseil, I’ll be able to look at it knowing I have achieved something great whilst helping other people who are given the news of this terrible diagnosis.’

In the UK, 16,000 people each year are diagnosed with a brain tumour. Despite the statistics, just one per cent of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to brain tumours historically.

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Mel Tiley, community development manager at Brain Tumour Research, said: ‘We’re grateful to Adele for sharing her experience of living with a brain tumour. Unfortunately, with one in three people knowing somebody affected by a brain tumour, Adele’s story is not uncommon.

‘It’s only with the support of people and families like these, who will help us in our vision in finding a cure for all types of brain tumours. We wish Adele well in her challenge.’

You can find out more about Ms Wise’s challenge and fundraiser opportunities on the Brain Tumour Research website. The charity funds sustainable research at dedicated centres UK wide and campaigns for the government and larger non-profit organisations to invest more into brain tumour research.