CHARITY
OFFICERS ON A MISSION
Brave officers from up and down the country are raising money and awareness to support people living with brain cancer and autism, as well as our heroic four- legged colleagues
A TESTIMONY OF SURVIVAL
David Stubbs, a detective with Staffordshire Police, shares his story about fighting a brain tumour and finding the positives in his experiences
I am a 43-year-old, married father of four and I work as a detective for Staffordshire Police. In 2021, my life changed enormously.
I had been suffering from headaches for a number of years, but never really thought anything of it. In June 2021, I tested positive for Covid. I had no symptoms leading up to the positive test, but then two days in, I had what I can only describe as an explosion in my head. The pressure was horrendous and my head felt like it was in a vice. I couldn’t even put my head down or rest as it was so bad – I slept kneeling on the floor with my forehead resting on the edge of the sofa.
This continued for a number of weeks – at this point, I decided to contact my GP, because I thought I might have long Covid. As well as the headaches, I had lost strength in my right arm and was struggling to clench my fist. I was sent for an urgent CT scan, still thinking it was Covid-related. Never did the thought of
36 | POLICE | OCTOBER 2022
a brain tumour cross my mind. The scan results came back two weeks later and it wasn’t good news. On 28 July 2021, I was told I had a brain tumour. The news absolutely floored me. My whole life was torn apart in that split second. I had never felt so scared and helpless.
I saw a specialist the week after and was told the only treatment available to me was a very risky surgery. The consultant wanted to operate the following week, owing to the size of the tumour. It was as big as a satsuma. On 16 September 2021, I had my surgery. Despite some complications, the surgery went well. They found that the tumour had wrapped itself around the main vein in my brain and I suffered substantial blood loss as they tried to scrape it away. Sadly, not all of the tumour could be removed. However, the biopsy showed
that it was a benign meningioma and, because there was only a small bit left behind, other treatment options would now be available to me should the tumour begin to grow again. I was told that the tumour had been growing for between nine and 15 years. Scarily, the doctor said that because the tumour was wrapped around the vein in my brain, I was months, if not weeks, away from collapse. I am one of very few
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48
