{"id":125182,"date":"2025-05-23T12:01:13","date_gmt":"2025-05-23T12:01:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/125182\/"},"modified":"2025-05-23T12:01:13","modified_gmt":"2025-05-23T12:01:13","slug":"devoted-son-runs-edinburgh-marathon-for-mum-whose-gp-misdiagnosed-incurable-tumour","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/125182\/","title":{"rendered":"Devoted son runs Edinburgh Marathon for mum whose GP misdiagnosed incurable tumour"},"content":{"rendered":"

A Scottish man is taking on the Edinburgh Half Marathon<\/a> in honour of his mum who has been diagnosed with an incurable illness.<\/p>\n

After what appeared to be hot flushes and a ‘mini stroke’, it was later revealed they were the symptoms of an aggressive and incurable brain tumour.<\/p>\n

Jonny Charles, 29, is running 13.1 miles to raise funds for Brain Tumour<\/a> Research, following his mum Fiona\u2019s shock diagnosis with glioblastoma in October 2024.<\/p>\n

READ MORE:<\/b> ‘Machete attack’ at Edinburgh home of Mark Richardson’s pal as property targeted<\/a><\/p>\n

READ MORE:<\/b> Edinburgh driver called out by furious locals with angry note on windscreen<\/a><\/p>\n

The 61-year-old former primary school teacher had experienced a series of unexplained symptoms that gradually worsened, reports Aberdeen Live<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Jonny said: “Mum would do anything for anyone. She gave up her teaching career to raise me, my brother Matthew and my sister Jennifer.”<\/p>\n

“She was always active, playing golf, walking a lot, and taking part in agility competitions with our dog, Pippa. They\u2019ve won so many rosettes that I don\u2019t think I could count them.<\/p>\n

\"Jonny<\/p>\n

Jonny Charles training for the Edinburgh Half Marathon -Credit:Brain Tumour Research<\/p>\n

“In mid-2024, mum started having these odd episodes where she\u2019d suddenly feel hot and flustered, with her heart racing, and she would need to sip water to calm herself.<\/p>\n

“She also mentioned a strange smell in her nose, like burning food, but couldn\u2019t describe it properly. At first, we were worried her heart palpitations may be mini strokes that would lead to a major one, but we just weren\u2019t sure.<\/p>\n

“Eventually, my parents decided to go private for an MRI because we just weren\u2019t getting answers. That scan changed everything.”<\/p>\n

Although a GP letter had initially reassured the family that the “small area of change at the front of the brain absolutely does not look like a brain tumour”, they were not satisfied and pushed for further investigation, arranging a private MRI scan at Albyn Hospital in Aberdeen.<\/p>\n

The results revealed a mass in Fiona\u2019s brain. Further testing, including a biopsy, confirmed it was a glioblastoma, one of the most aggressive and fast-growing forms of brain tumour, with a prognosis of 12 to 18 months.<\/p>\n

Fiona received the news just before her 61st birthday. “I\u2019ll never forget when she called us to come over so she could give the news to us in person,” Jonny said.<\/p>\n

“She didn\u2019t tell us why, which made the wait really difficult. We sat down in the living room, and she told us she had cancer.<\/p>\n

“She stayed calm, but I could see the effort it took. We were all trying to come to terms with it, thinking about what the future might look like.<\/p>\n

“It hit me that there were things she might never get to see \u2013 weddings, grandchildren, all the moments you take for granted.”<\/p>\n

\"Jonny<\/p>\n

Jonny (right) with his mum Fiona and her husband Graham -Credit:Brain Tumour Research<\/p>\n

Since her diagnosis, Fiona has completed radiotherapy and is currently on round five of six chemotherapy sessions, with treatment going as well as could be hoped.<\/p>\n

She has experienced fatigue, weight loss and reduced appetite, and has made significant changes to her diet after researching how sugar might fuel tumour growth.<\/p>\n

Initially on a mostly liquid diet, Fiona has now returned to eating more normally. She is also back to baking and cooking \u2013 activities she loves and that help lift her spirits.<\/p>\n

She often shares homemade food with Jonny and his sister when they visit. He has also taken over weekly agility classes with Pippa, helping maintain a routine that once brought his mum so much joy.<\/p>\n

Join <\/b>Edinburgh Live’s Whatsapp Community here<\/b><\/a> and get the latest news sent straight to your messages.<\/b><\/p>\n

Jonny is now training for the Edinburgh Half Marathon in support of the new Scottish Brain Tumour Research Centre of Excellence, a collaboration between Brain Tumour Research and Beatson Cancer Charity.<\/p>\n

The centre, based in Glasgow and Edinburgh universities, is focusing on research into glioblastoma.<\/p>\n

Jonny said: “Before Mum\u2019s diagnosis, I had never even heard of glioblastoma. When I started reading about it, what shocked me most was how little funding it receives.<\/p>\n

“Just one per cent of the national spend on cancer research goes to brain tumours, even though they are one of the most aggressive and devastating forms of cancer.<\/p>\n

“That feels completely out of step with the impact they have on families like mine.<\/p>\n

“This isn\u2019t about finishing with a fast time. I\u2019m doing it to raise money, to raise awareness, and to help make sure more people understand how overlooked brain tumours still are.”<\/p>\n

Ashley McWilliams, Community Development Manager at Brain Tumour Research, said: “Jonny\u2019s story is incredibly powerful. His love for his mum and his commitment to doing something practical and positive are truly inspiring.<\/p>\n

“We are proud to have him supporting our work and wish him every success with the Edinburgh Half Marathon.”<\/p>\n

To support Jonny\u2019s fundraising challenge, click here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A Scottish man is taking on the Edinburgh Half Marathon in honour of his mum who has been…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":125183,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8816],"tags":[55092,55520,748,1102,4884,27294,55521,55519,31066,712,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-125182","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-edinburgh","8":"tag-brain-tumour","9":"tag-brain-tumour-research","10":"tag-britain","11":"tag-edinburgh","12":"tag-great-britain","13":"tag-half-marathon","14":"tag-incurable-illness","15":"tag-jonny-charles","16":"tag-mum","17":"tag-scotland","18":"tag-uk","19":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114557045297301516","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/125182","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=125182"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/125182\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/125183"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=125182"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=125182"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=125182"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}