The son of a 70-year-old woman from Bridgwater, whose symptoms were mistaken for drunkenness, is raising awareness of brain tumours after she died from one. Elly Monaghan appeared to be slurring her words and seemed confused, which her son initially thought might be due to alcohol.
Pete Monaghan, 42, called his mother in March 2022 and noticed her speech was slow. He jokingly asked if she had been drinking, but his father said no. The next day, she was taken to Musgrove Park Hospital in Taunton, where scans revealed a glioblastoma and a bleed on the brain.
Ms Monaghan underwent surgery, radiotherapy, and one full round of chemotherapy. However, by December 2022, her platelet count was too low, and doctors said no further treatment was available. In March this year, scans showed the tumour had spread to two different areas of her brain, making further surgery impossible.
Mr Monaghan said his mother lost her mobility and ended up in a wheelchair, unable to do the things she loved. She died at home in July, 14 months after diagnosis. He is now participating in the '100 a Day Your Way' challenge to raise funds for Brain Tumour Research.
The charity notes that only 1% of national cancer research spending has gone to brain tumours since 2002. It is calling on the government to ring-fence £110m of funding to increase investment to £35m a year by 2028. Mr Monaghan is also campaigning to reach 100,000 signatures on a petition for a parliamentary debate on research funding.
