A father who had pins and needles in his face and fingers while on holiday was given just months to live. Robert Armstrong, 58, a marine engineer from Felixstowe , East Suffolk, began feeling “pins and needles” on the right side of his body a few months after hurting his back in January 2023. But what the father-of-two thought was a trapped nerve turned out to be a large inoperable tumour in the middle of his brain.
In a matter of weeks, Rob’s symptoms deteriorated and he started losing his vision, sensation and movement, as well as being constantly tired. Rob underwent a type of radiation therapy in June 2023, known as Gamma Knife radiosurgery, a highly precise tool used to target brain tumours without damaging the surrounding cells. Rob’s tumour “shrunk significantly” but his symptoms persisted and in May 2024 he was told by doctors that they were out of options.
Despite the devastating news Rob remained optimistic they would find another solution, and after seeking a second opinion has learned about a novel treatment which could help him fight the cancer. Rob’s daughter, Loti Armstrong, 25, has launched a fundraiser on GoFundMe to help pay for the treatment – a type of antibody drug designed to interfere with cancer cells’ ability to replicate – that costs £14,000 a session and is administered into the patient’s blood stream every three weeks. Loti, a venue manager from Margate , Kent , told PA Real Life: “It’s really weird thinking about who he .