Mother's Heartbreak as Fit 21-Year-Old Son Dies After Brain Tumour Misdiagnosed as Vertigo
A grieving mother is mourning the tragic death of her 21-year-old son after he succumbed to an aggressive brain tumour that had been repeatedly dismissed by doctors as simple vertigo. James Mann, a fit and healthy police officer with Hertfordshire Constabulary and a qualified personal trainer from Bedfordshire, first experienced concerning symptoms after returning from a holiday in Greece last June.
Initial Symptoms and Repeated Misdiagnosis
James initially complained of feeling 'imbalanced' and thought his ears hadn't properly cleared from his flight home. He waited approximately two days before consulting his GP, who diagnosed dislodged ear crystals and prescribed head-tilting exercises. Within weeks, however, James's dizziness intensified dramatically, leading to vomiting episodes.
The young man returned to his doctor four times before receiving an official vertigo diagnosis in August, at which point he was signed off work. Despite his condition continuing to deteriorate throughout September, his GP maintained the vertigo diagnosis during subsequent visits.
James's mother, Dianne Mann, eventually intervened, expressing her 'grave concerns' about her son's worsening symptoms. She described how his dizziness had progressed to the point where he struggled to walk without steadying himself against walls or furniture, and had to stop driving entirely.
Frustration and Eventual Diagnosis
'None of us could understand how someone who was the picture of health, a qualified personal trainer who loved his sport and was the epitome of strength, could suddenly be like this,' Dianne explained. 'It seemed a bit crazy that nothing seemed to be able to be done for something that is extraordinarily debilitating for him, out of thin air.'
Growing increasingly frustrated, Dianne pushed for an urgent MRI referral. Though labelled 'urgent,' they were told it could take up to four weeks at Bedford Hospital. Instead of waiting, Dianne called daily to check for cancellations, securing an earlier appointment on November 10, 2025.
'This is when our world just collapsed,' Dianne recalled. Immediately after the scan, the radiographer expressed concern about a mass detected on James's brain.
Emergency Treatment and Devastating Prognosis
The 21-year-old was immediately transferred to Addenbrooke's Hospital neurology team, where he underwent emergency surgery on November 13 to relieve life-threatening pressure. Surgeons fitted an external drain and removed approximately 70 percent of the tumour, though its position prevented complete removal.
Complications arose when James's brain failed to drain properly, leading to infection that set back his recovery. The family then received the devastating diagnosis: James had H3K27 midline glioma, a high-grade, progressive tumour typically located in the brainstem, thalamus, midbrain or spinal cord, with a prognosis of less than one year.
Further Complications and Final Days
James underwent additional surgery to repair a head wound, followed by another procedure in early December to insert a shunt. He subsequently suffered a seizure and was placed in a medically induced coma for five days before waking.
'In true James style he decided 'Right, I've had enough of this, I'm coming off this' and he tried to sit up and pull the tube out of his mouth,' Dianne remembered.
Though initially allowed to leave intensive care and come off life support, doctors determined James was 'too unwell' for standard tumour-targeting treatments. He was sent home in December, with Dianne remaining constantly by his side.
'I was with him every day either sleeping on the chair or on the floor,' she added. 'The first few weeks at home were challenging for him - he was mobile, albeit unsteady.'
Brief Hope and Heartbreaking Setback
A week after New Year, James's medical team noted he appeared more 'settled' following the surgeries and considered radiotherapy to shrink the remaining tumour. However, devastating news arrived approximately one week later.
'The oncologist said 'I'm really sorry, the tumour has grown back in its entirety from where 70 percent was taken away',' Dianne recounted. 'In the space of three and a half to four weeks, the tumour had completely grown back and looked like it had travelled to other places in the brain.'
At that point, James was given between a handful of weeks and three months to live. Upon returning home, he immediately turned to his loved ones, including siblings Ben, 26, and Kate, 24.
'He navigated and crafted conversations with them, for them to somehow have a blueprint of how to live and cope without him,' Dianne explained. 'He spent every moment just loving everyone and laughing and sharing every moment with us.'
Final Hours and Legacy
James's condition 'quickly declined' and 'all of a sudden' the family was told he had less than 24 hours to live. He died nine hours later, on January 30, surrounded by family at home.
'We did what we've done as a family forever - we were together the whole time, and he died at home with us,' Dianne said. 'If love alone could have saved James, he would have lived forever.'
The much-loved young man's funeral was held on March 4, 2026, with approximately 150 people attending, including police colleagues from Hertfordshire Constabulary.
'It was a testament to how much people clearly loved him - friends old and new were there, teachers, police colleagues - that was beautiful and excruciating in equal measure,' Dianne reflected.
Honouring James's Memory
Following the funeral, the family held a 'celebration of life party' at a golf club where James had previously worked, displaying hundreds of photos from birth to age 21 and screening a film his sister created from family video clips.
Dianne and her family are now focusing on organising memorial events in James's honour and fundraising for the Brain Tumour Charity.
'We want to help fund vital research and clinical trials into aggressive brain tumours - so that one day, families facing this nightmare are given real options, real hope and real chances,' Dianne explained.
'A saying my mum had that I passed down to my children was 'Things are always going to go wrong in life, but we have to always try and get some good out of the bad.' So that's what we're doing, we're honouring that family belief in the best way possible, which is to try and keep James alive in the only way we can now.'
