Susan Rowlett, from Dorking, Surrey, experienced leg pain and weakness for more than 10 months – and was rocked when she was diagnosed with a meningioma, a brain tumour
A mum was diagnosed with a brain tumour after a key symptom was initially dismissed.
When Susan Rowlett saw her GP about her leg pain, testing and an MRI scan showed everything was normal. She was given squats and lunge exercises but when her aches didn’t go away, she went for another MRI 10 months later.
And the 63-year-old woman, from Dorking, Surrey, was stunned to find out she a “golf ball-sized tumour”. Susan was diagnosed with a meningioma, and had a seven-hour operation to get the brain tumour removed. Her experience comes after a man, 30, put shoulder pain down to gym aches – and then doctors asked where he’d like to die.
But Susan was fortunate her tumour was spotted in time for the surgery, and she now just needs two yearly scans to monitor this. However, her mobility is still affected and the mother of two uses a walker to get around, and has had several falls since the operation.
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Speaking today from her home in Dorking, Susan said: “I had various tests on my legs which came back normal, and I was sent for an MRI scan. A tumour was never on my radar so when they told me the golf ball sized growth on my brain that I could’ve been born with it, I was in disbelief.”
Susan started getting leg pain during lockdown and went to the doctors in September 2020. Testing showed nothing was wrong but she was given exercises to do to try and help with her pain.
But when this didn’t improve, she went for an MRI at a private hospital and was diagnosed in July 2021. The mum of two said: “I was in good health when I was diagnosed, it came completely out of the blue. I often think of popstar, Tom Parker, who was diagnosed with an aggressive tumour around the same time as me.
“He was young, famous, had his whole life ahead of him, but this disease doesn’t care who you are. Brain tumours are indiscriminate; they can affect anyone at any age. And now even Davina has shared her diagnosis. It’s far more common than people realise, and yet research remains hugely underfunded.”
Susan’s daughter, Lindsay Rowlatt, 34, raised almost £700 for the charity by taking part in 200k in May Your Way for Brain Tumour Research.
Susan said: “Brain Tumour Research is a cause close to my heart. I’m incredibly proud of Lindsay and everything she’s doing to raise awareness. Until you or someone you love is affected, you don’t realise how little progress has been made in treating this disease. That must change.
“By sharing my story, I hope to inspire change and highlight the urgent need for more research, so that fewer families face this heartbreak.”
Charlie Allsebrook, community development manager at Brain Tumour Research, commended Susan by saying: “We’re grateful to Susan for sharing her story. One in three people knows someone affected by a brain tumour and there are more than 100 different types of brain tumour, making them notoriously difficult to find effective treatments for.
“Susan is helping to shine a light on brain tumours. We’re so grateful to have her and her family’s support and together we will find a cure for all types of brain tumours.”