My week-long headache turned out to be a brain tumor – I had an unusual sign

Kimberley Baggley, from Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire, originally thought nothing of a migraine that saw her sent home from work.

Little did she know that this was the first sign that she had a potentially deadly brain tumor.

The 27-year-old only became concerned when she started feeling “pins and needles” on the left side of her face later that day and rushed to the emergency room. However, she claims she was sent away with painkillers.

Four additional visits throughout the week complaining of the same feeling also led to her dismissal, she said.

Then things took a dramatic turn when the husband returned home from taking their son swimming and discovered the primary school teacher unconscious in bed having had a seizure.

Kimberley Baggley, from Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire, originally thought little of a migraine that saw her sent home from work

But when the 27-year-old began feeling “pins and needles” on the left side of her face later that day, she rushed to the emergency room, where she claims she was sent away with painkillers. Pictured is Kimberley with her husband Luke Baggley, 28, and son George

Blue lighted back to hospital, tests revealed she had astrocytoma – an aggressive brain tumor that affects around 4,500 Brits every year.

Despite surgery and 33 rounds of radiation therapy, she is still undergoing chemotherapy to treat the grade three tumor.

Recalling her terrifying ordeal, Mrs Baggley said: ‘You never think something like this will happen to you, but when it does, your whole world revolves around something you know nothing about – it’s scary.

“Your life stops when you are diagnosed with a brain tumor.

‘There is a lot of unknown ahead and a long process that puts other parts of your life on hold.

‘At that moment, your whole world comes crashing down.

‘My husband was terrified because he didn’t know what was going to happen.’

Astrocytomas are one of the most common forms of brain tumors, accounting for around a third of all cases of this type of cancer in the UK.

They grow from specific cells, called astrocytes, which protect nerves and are vital for processing information.

Experts still don’t know exactly what causes astocytoma to develop, although scientists suspect it may have a genetic link.

Common symptoms include headaches, difficulty speaking, changes in vision such as double or blurred vision, as well as seizures, confused thinking and memory problems.

Astrocytomas are graded from one to four, depending on their severity and how they respond to treatment, with three and four being considered high grade.

Only around a quarter of Brits diagnosed with high-grade astrocytoma live five years or more, according to The Brain Tumor Charity.

After suffering a seizure at home, Mrs Baggley had another while being given a blue light to Royal Stoke University Hospital.

Despite surgery and 33 rounds of radiation therapy, she is still undergoing chemotherapy to combat the grade three tumor.

After suffering a seizure at home, Mrs Baggley had another whilst being given a blue light to Royal Stoke University Hospital

Doctors then performed surgery and removed 95% of the tumor, which was sent for analysis to determine what type of cancer it was.

Mrs. Baggley said: “I remember my consultant said it wasn’t the worst, but it wasn’t the best tumor to get and that put my mind at ease.

‘I was quite naive when I was first diagnosed as I am a very positive person and always try to make the best of a situation.

‘I thought I would have the operation and that would be it.’

A month after her first surgery, however, an infection meant she had to have another operation to remove part of her skull.

Since then, she has also battled sepsis, which delayed the start of her cancer treatment.

“The person my diagnosis affected the most was my husband,” Mrs. Baggley said.

‘He had to keep working while trying to look after me and our son.

‘He took on two roles and was both mother and father last year.

A month after her first surgery, however, an infection meant she needed another to remove part of her skull.

Since then, she has also battled sepsis, which delayed starting treatment. Pictured is Mrs Baggley’s brain scan showing the tumor (light blue)

‘My little boy found it difficult at first, one day he said ‘mum, are you going to die?’ which was hard to hear.

‘It affected them and my family, seeing someone you love go through something so terrible must be terrifying for them too.’

She added: “It’s time for things to change, for me and everyone else living with a brain tumour. This is why research into more effective treatments is so urgently needed.”

Since her diagnosis, Mrs Baggley has abseiled from Anfield Stadium to raise £7,000 for The Brain Tumor Charity and started a support group in Stoke-on-Trent to help others diagnosed with cancer.

Dr Simon Newman, scientific director of The Brain Tumor Charity, which helps fund research into possible treatments, said: “High-grade brain tumors are some of the most devastating brain tumors and current treatments are simply not good enough.

“We hope that by understanding the immune system and how it responds to brain tumors, we can improve immunotherapy treatment options and make the same progress in brain tumors that we have seen in other types of cancer.”