I thought the tingling feeling in my cheek was just stress but it was really a rare brain tumor

A woman who thought her facial pain was initially due to stress was diagnosed with a rare brain tumor.Nicola Shaw, 38, had just returned from a dream trip to Antarctica when she started getting a “tingling” in her left cheek.Initially she put it down to stress but it spread to her nose, eye, and head and became so intense that she would keel over, clutching her head in agony. Nicola went to see a doctor and was told she needed an MRI, which she thought was an “overreaction” but it revealed meningioma – a tumor in a rare and dangerous location near her brain stem and left optic nerve.She had a 10-hour operation which removed 95% of the tumor but the tumor then grew back by 17 millimeters in six months.Nicola had Gamma Knife Radiotherapy – which precisely targets radiation to destroy tumors while sparing healthy cells – which took a huge toll on her.Now stable, she has regular scans to monitor her tumor, she is trekking across the Sahara Desert to raise money for Brain Tumour Research.Nicola, an early years teacher, from Manchester, said: “I started experiencing tingling in my left cheek.At first, I thought it was just stress, but by January 2023, the pain had spread to my nose, eye, and head.

It was so intense it would stop me in my tracks, leaving me keeled over, clutching my head in agony. “A friend urged me to see a doctor, so I went for a consultation and was referred to a neurologist. “At the time, I thought this was an overreaction, but I went along with it and saw a specialist at a private hospital in Chicago.When the neurologist suggested I needed an MRI, I hesitated, thinking it was unnecessary and over the top.

Eventually, I gave in, never expecting what was to come. “The scan revealed a meningioma, a tumor in a rare and dangerous location near my brain stem and left optic nerve. “I was in denial and insisted they had the wrong person, but the truth was evident in the scans, and I had to see a neurosurgeon as soon as possible....