Watching your child reach important milestones feels magical for any parent, but for Clare Smerdon it’s particularly poignant as she’s painfully aware she’s unlikely to be there to see many more of her three-year-old Teddy’s big moments. Two years ago the single mother received the shattering news that she had a glioblastoma (also known as a grade 4 astrocytoma), a fast-growing, aggressive primary brain tumour without a cure. Only five per cent of those diagnosed survive for five or more years.
“Teddy hasn’t started school yet, and I want to be there for the big events,” says Clare, 36. “But I know I won’t be. It’s a terminal disease and I was told a year ago I only have two or three years left.
I feel so guilty – I’ve only just brought him into the world and now I’m going to leave him.” In June 2022, Clare began suffering excruciating headaches along with seeing flashing lights and colours. She went to her optician who spotted something amiss and referred her to her GP.
He prescribed a different migraine medication for the disorder she occasionally suffered with, but still the headaches continued. “My son was just over a year then, so I put my tiredness down to being a busy mum,” says Clare, a podiatrist from Paignton, Devon. “I needed to rest more, but once the constant headaches began, I struggled to look after myself, never mind Teddy.
” The headaches lasted for days on end. After six weeks of this pain, in the early hours one morning in.