A 19-year-old student who thought she had a common cold learnt she had terminal brain cancer after she’d gone for a routine eye test.
Laura Nutall, from Lancashire, England, had just started studying international relations at King’s College in London in October last year when she began to experience severe headaches and flu-like symptoms, Mirror reports.
She went for an eye test and was diagnosed with glioblastoma – a type of tumour that occurs in the brain and spinal cord, according to Mayo Clinic.
“We were devastated and horrified to find out that the prognosis was so poor with this disease,” wrote Laura’s mom, Nicola, on the GoFundMe page that had been set up for the teen.
“The most common length of survival following diagnosis is 12-15 months, with fewer than 3-5% of people surviving longer than five years. Without treatment, survival is typically just three months.”
Late last year Laura underwent six “gruelling” weeks of radiotherapy and chemotherapy at the Christie Hospital in Manchester. She’ll soon start another round of chemo treatments, People reports.
“Laura had her whole life ahead of her,” Nicola said. “Now she’s having to cope with the fact that her remaining life will be very short.
“As a family we’re beyond devastated. We’re trying to remain positive and looking into lots of alternative treatments and therapies – anything that will buy her a bit more time,” the mom-of-two added.
She’s now doing all she can to fulfill her daughter’s bucket list. So far Laura’s seen Paul McCartney perform in concert in London and watched an Everton football match, Birmingham Live reports.
“I’m trying anything I can think of to help keep Laura feeling positive,” Nicola said. “We’re doing as much as we can to make the best possible memories.”
Sources: People, Mirror, Birmingham Live