A young man from South Yorkshire who believed he had suffered a simple sports injury was given a devastating ten-year life expectancy after his symptoms were revealed to be an aggressive brain tumour.
From suspected ligament tear to seizure
Sean Ryan Sweeney, a 31-year-old senior accounts director from Doncaster, first began experiencing worrying signs in January 2022. He suffered from persistent headaches, muscular neck pain, and a tingling sensation down the right side of his body.
Convinced he had torn a neck ligament during a run or a weight training session, Sean sought help from a physiotherapist. After several sessions yielded no improvement, he was discharged, leaving him frustrated and concerned. "I remember feeling unsettled, thinking, I don't feel right, but not being able to explain why," Sean recalled.
The situation escalated dramatically on 19 July 2022, when his wife Lucy, then his partner, found him having a seizure at home. She immediately called 999, and he was blue-lighted to Doncaster Royal Infirmary.
A devastating diagnosis and gruelling treatment
Scans at the hospital revealed a lesion on his brain. Sean was referred to specialists at Sheffield Royal Hallamshire Hospital, where he received the crushing diagnosis: a grade 3 astrocytoma, an incurable and aggressive form of brain cancer. Doctors told him his life expectancy was around a decade.
In November 2022, Sean underwent a nine-and-a-half-hour awake craniotomy to remove part of the tumour. During the high-risk procedure, he suffered an acute stroke, which temporarily affected his walking and caused a droop on the left side of his face. With rehabilitation, he has made a remarkable recovery.
His treatment continued into early 2023 at Weston Park Hospital with five weeks of radiotherapy and 12 rounds of chemotherapy, which he completed in February 2024. His condition is now stable.
Raising funds and awareness after life-changing news
Sean is now channelling his energy into raising vital funds and awareness for Brain Tumour Research, the only national charity dedicated solely to finding a cure for all types of brain tumour.
Alongside his father-in-law, Carl Hathaway, 59, Sean completed Sir Chris Hoy's 60KM Tour de 4 cycling challenge, raising over £2,500. The pair, whose bond strengthened during Carl's drives to Sean's radiotherapy sessions, are now planning to tackle the 100km route next year.
"Finishing treatment doesn't mean everything goes back to normal – you're still living with the impact," Sean explained. "It's shocking how little funding brain tumours receive compared to other cancers."
Ashley McWilliams, Community Development Manager at Brain Tumour Research, said: "We are incredibly grateful to Sean for sharing his story. His experience highlights the reality that treatment can be gruelling and recovery long, with life-changing consequences even when someone looks well on the outside."
