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Press release
Less than 20% of those diagnosed with a brain tumour survive beyond five years
Schoolgirl back in panto after overcoming brain tumour – oh yes she is!
A schoolgirl whose brain tumour was overlooked despite dozens of medical appointments is back doing what she loves most this Christmas.
Poppy Eden, 11, has been chosen to dance in this year’s Maidstone Panto. She will be appearing in Peter Pan alongside fellow students from Chatham’s Dance Alley. And she will be sharing the stage with stars including X Factor finalist Amelia Lily and soap actor James Sutton.
Less than two years after she was diagnosed and underwent emergency surgery, Poppy successfully auditioned for the panto which opens on Friday 15th December.
Her mum Karen said: “The last time Poppy was in a panto was in 2015 before her diagnosis. Somehow, despite the headaches and sickness, she managed to keep going through December and January. She was finally diagnosed in February and underwent emergency surgery to remove a low-grade tumour. This year she cannot wait to get on stage and we are all so proud of her and happy for her.
“Poppy absolutely loves to perform and we have had the most wonderful support throughout from her dance school Dance Alley. Despite the agonising amount of time it took to get a diagnosis we know we are fortunate as her tumour was not cancerous and no follow-up treatment was required.
“Now she is back on stage, doing what she loves. We know many others are not so fortunate – brain tumours kill more children and adults under the age of 40 than any other cancer, yet just 1% of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to this devastating disease.”
The family is working with the national charity Brain Tumour Research to highlight the fact that, despite being indiscriminate and affecting anyone at any age, just 1% of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to this devastating disease.
Poppy and her family are campaigning to raise awareness of brain tumours and, along with Brain Tumour Research, lobbying the government and larger cancer charities to see the national spend increased to £30m - £35m a year, in line with other cancers such as breast and leukaemia.
To make a donation to Brain Tumour Research this Christmas please go to https://www.braintumourresearch.org/donation/hope-tree-appeal
For further information, please contact:
Susan Castle-Smith at Brain Tumour Research on 01908 867206 or 07887 241639 or Susan@braintumourresearch.org
Notes to Editors
Brain Tumour Research is the only national charity in the UK focused on funding sustainable research to find a cure for brain tumours. We are building a game-changing network of world-class Research Centres of Excellence in the UK. Embracing passionate member charities nationwide, £5.5 million was raised towards research and support during 2016.
We are campaigning to see the national spend on research into brain tumours increased to £30 - £35 million a year, in line with breast cancer and leukaemia. The charity is celebrating a year of high-profile campaigning on this issue following the unprecedented success of its petition in 2016. Following that, Brain Tumour Research is now taking a leading role in the Government’s Task and Finish Working Group convened to tackle the historic underfunding for research.
Key statistics on brain tumours:
- Brain tumours kill more children and adults under the age of 40 than any other cancer
- They kill more children than leukaemia
- They kill more men under 45 than prostate cancer
- They kill more women under 35 than breast cancer
- Just 1% of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to this devastating disease
- In the UK 16,000 people each year are diagnosed with a brain tumour
- Less than 20% of those diagnosed with a brain tumour survive beyond five years compared with an average of 50% across all cancers
- Brain tumours are indiscriminate; they can affect anyone, at any age
- Incidences of, and deaths from, brain tumours are increasing.