A 38-year-old ex-soldier is selling the wheelchair-accessible home he and his wife spent £150,000 adapting now his brain tumour has become incurable, to fund “one last chance” at private treatment. Paul Coleman said he noticed he had lost hearing in one ear in 2012 and was diagnosed with a benign brain tumour, which was monitored with annual MRI scans.
From benign tumour to cancer diagnosis
Paul and his wife Michelle, 33, lived a “normal life” for several years, but renovated their home to make it accessible in preparation for his condition progressing. In 2020, they said a scan showed the tumour had grown and a biopsy confirmed it had become cancerous, with Paul undergoing radiotherapy and chemotherapy before being told he had around five to eight years to live.
Two years later, he said the tumour had grown and looked like it occupied around 25% of his brain and was now grade four, but further treatment and surgery kept it “at bay”. However, in early 2026, doctors told Paul and Michelle the tumour had progressed to his brain stem, and after further radiotherapy left him severely debilitated, they were told surgery was no longer an option.
Fundraising for private treatment
Michelle, an accountant, and Paul, a groundworker, who live in Geddington, Northamptonshire, are now fundraising for private treatment costing £4,000 per session. Michelle told PA Real Life: “I just want my husband back…we’re fighting for time. That’s all we’re asking for: time.
“He’s not ready to go. I’m not ready to lose him. Our family isn’t ready to lose him. We aren’t asking people to cure Paul. We aren’t asking people to fix something that can’t be fixed. We’re asking for a chance. A chance to try this treatment. A chance to fight. A chance to have more time together.”
Early symptoms and house adaptation
In 2012, Paul said he noticed he had lost hearing in one ear, and a doctor at a routine health check at work suggested he visit his GP. After several tests, Paul was told he had a brain tumour, but it was benign and would be monitored with an MRI scan once a year. “I just thought I lost my hearing from my army days, I didn’t think it was anything serious…so it was a bit of a shock,” he explained.
For the next few years, Paul and Michelle lived a “normal life”, although they would feel “scared” and “nervous” in the week leading up to each scan. In 2015, they bought their first house, but said Paul was rejected for life insurance. “It felt like they knew more than us on what was to come,” Paul said.
In 2020, they moved home and, over the following years, spent £150,000 renovating it to make it accessible for when Paul’s condition progressed and he needed to use a wheelchair. This included widening the doors, installing taps with levers, rewiring the house so sockets and light switches were within reach, and extending the property to fit a downstairs wet room and bedroom.
Treatment and surgery
In 2020, they said a scan revealed the tumour had grown, and a biopsy confirmed it had become cancerous, despite Paul having no additional symptoms. Michelle explained: “It was the worst news possible. They told us it was incurable but it’s not the end of the game – he was looking at having quite a good lifestyle.”
Paul underwent radiotherapy and chemotherapy, and in 2021 said he was told he had around five to eight years to live. The following year, doctors told them the tumour had grown and they said it appeared to occupy around 25% of his brain and had become a grade four tumour. According to the Brain Tumour Charity, people with a grade four glioblastoma have a life expectancy of around 12 to 18 months with standard treatment.
Paul underwent brain surgery in 2022 in an attempt to remove as much of the tumour as possible. Paul said: “They removed all of it apart from a strip – they said if they took that bit out it would have affected me permanently and left me with brain damage.”
“That would have been the hardest time for me, when Paul was in surgery, I basically cried solidly for 10 hours waiting for that phone call,” Michelle added. “We didn’t know if he’d come out of surgery, or if he’d be really disabled and unable to walk or swallow.”
Paul was bedbound for a week following the operation and developed a slur, making him sound “as if he is drunk”, as well as problems with eye tracking and being “wobbly” on his feet. He went on to have further treatment, which kept the tumour “at bay”, and regular scans every three months showed it had not grown.
New treatment and fundraising
However, at the beginning of 2026, they were told the tumour had progressed and reached his brain stem, the area connecting the brain and spinal cord. Paul said: “Everything was going great until it wasn’t, and it’s gone downhill from there.” “It was horrific to hear,” Michelle added.
Paul underwent further radiotherapy, finishing treatment in July, but said it left him severely debilitated. He was constantly vomiting, struggled to keep fluids down and suffered “piercing” headaches, resulting in around four trips to A&E. The treatment also caused swelling on his brain, while his right hand began to tremor and the left side of his face started to droop.
The symptoms have continued to “get worse” over time, with him not being able to use his right hand and he also has weakness in his right leg. Then, during the summer, following a multidisciplinary team meeting, Paul and Michelle were told surgery was no longer an option. “We had quite a few breakdowns over it,” Michelle said.
But, doctors have recommended a targeted cancer drug called Bevacizumab, which according to Cancer Research UK, targets a cancer cell protein called vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). This protein helps cancers grow blood vessels so they can get food and oxygen from the blood. All cancers need a blood supply to survive and grow, but Bevacizumab blocks this protein and stops the cancer from growing blood vessels, so it is starved and cannot grow.
For Paul, this would run alongside chemotherapy, and would aim to also help his swelling and necrosis which is premature death of body cells and living tissue. However, the treatment is not routinely available on the NHS, and Paul and Michelle said doctors told them he would need to have it privately. They were told each treatment would cost £4,000, with four initial treatments needed.
Michelle said: “It feels like I’m living through a panic attack on a permanent basis. “It feels like a very American problem to have.” To help cover the cost, they set up a GoFundMe with a £20,000 target and have so far raised more than £15,800. “The kindness from everyone has just been unreal and it’s taken a massive weight off our shoulders,” Michelle explained.
But they do not know how many treatments Paul will ultimately need. The couple have now put their house on the market to help fund his treatment and are “watching every penny”. Michelle said: “All the money we’re paying for our mortgage could be going towards treatment if we downsize.
“It’s going to be so hard to give this house up – we’ve got friends down the road that come and help us, and we have a whole community here.” Looking ahead, Paul, said: “I served in the army, I fought for my country, and I’ll fight this.”
