Iona Atkins, from Solihull, is to undergo a vital scan for a brain tumour that her family fears could have reappeared after 10 hours of surgery.
On the same day her mother Ann is launching a new support group for brain tumour victims at the Warwickshire County Cricket Club ground in Edgbaston, Birmingham.
Six-year-old Iona had an operation to remove the slow-growing Craniopharyngioma tumour from her brain in 2007, but doctors are worried that it could have returned. She is due to have an MRI scan today.
Ann Atkins will be launching the West Midlands Brain Tumour UK Support Group, along with Birmingham brain tumour patient Jean Tomlinson, backed by Brain Tumour UK, a network of groups which help sufferers across the country.
Mrs Atkins said: “Often it is not possible to say ‘everything will be alright’, but there was no aftercare at all. We had no idea what to expect when we got Iona home. I’d love her to be able to speak to other children who have had the same type of surgery.
“I’d like my other daughter, Alex, who is 11, to have some kind of support. She must have tremendous doubt and uncertainty about the future, and that applies to any parent’s or patient’s perspective, too. But there was nothing available.”
Ms Tomlinson, who had to give up her teaching job and driving when a brain tumour began to affect her vision, said she had also been dismayed at the lack of support when she was diagnosed with a tumour.
Brain Tumour UK’s chief executive, Jenny Baker, said: “Feeling alone and uncertain only adds to the burden of a brain tumour.
“We want to ensure that patients and their carers can share their worries, understand the problems and feel more in control of their situation.
“This support group, like our others, will be a major benefit to the West Midlands.”
The West Midlands Brain Tumour UK Support Group’s first meeting will take place at 2pm on September 12 in the Health Exchange at Birmingham’s Central Library.
For further information, contact Jean Tomlinson on 0121 744 4888 or email jeananntomlinson@btinternet.co.uk.
Brain Tumour UK’s annual conference is taking place at Edgbaston today and tomorrow. To attend, contact Claire Miller on 0845 219 8107 or 07986 229443 or claire.miller@braintumouruk.org.uk
