Man given 12 months to live after ‘headache’.

A former Royal Marine was told by doctors his headaches and dizziness were probably due to dehydration or a migraine he was given 12 to 18 months after a terminal brain cancer diagnosis.

James Greenwood, 42, who is in Wales with his girlfriend Rachel Jones, 31, said he started experiencing dizziness and a “constant”, “dull” headache in May while talking to his brother-in-law .

“My vision was getting a little shaky and I had to sit down a little bit,” he said.

“I’ve always had a clean bill of health so I thought it was a bit unusual,” Mr Greenwood told PA Life.

Soon after, Greenwood said he began suffering headaches that began as a “constant” and “dull” pain.

He booked an appointment with his GP for June 5 and was told his symptoms were probably related to dehydration and an eye test could be delayed as he wears glasses and his job involves working with computer screens .

Greenwood was also given a blood test and an electrocardiogram (EKG), a non-invasive test that measures the heart’s electrical activity, but said both tests came back with “no concerns”.

After “crashing along” for several days, he had an “unusual episode” in Manchester on June 10.

“I was walking around town and it was like an out-of-body experience, everything around me slowed down, which bothered me,” he said.

He secured a same-day appointment with his GP and was told his symptoms were consistent with a migraine.

“I’ve never suffered from migraines in the past, so I was skeptical,” Greenwood said.

“As with the first GP appointment, I was looking for a scan of some sort – maybe it was a sixth sense or something, but I just knew how I felt and was trying to have peace of mind more than everything

He said he was prescribed medication to relieve migraines and told to make another appointment by the end of the week if it didn’t have the desired effect.

However, Greenwood woke up around 5am on June 12 with a “severe” headache, which prompted her to go to the emergency room and after “persistent” requests for a CT scan, a walnut-sized mass was discovered in the right temporal part. lobe of his brain.

Greenwood underwent brain surgery to remove the tumor on June 28 and was given the bombshell news in August that it had been diagnosed as grade four glioblastoma, the most aggressive form of brain cancer, and had a prognosis of 12 to 18 months .

“There are some days where you have to kid yourself and wonder if this is actually happening,” Greenwood said.

“Getting the news is incredibly difficult and you have that initial period of shock, but after that, you have to process it and try to make the best of it.”

After a six-week course of chemotherapy and radiotherapy, Greenwood is waiting to see if the treatment has improved his prognosis, before starting a more intensive course of chemotherapy at the end of October.

“Surprisingly, it’s been kind of liberating,” he said.

“I think everyone is probably guilty of taking people for granted, your loved ones, your friends, your family, but it’s affected me reconnecting with some old friends, I think it’s brought the family closer together. .†€

“It changes your perspective and it’s a bit cliche, but you’re trying to enjoy every moment.”

Greenwood has tried to “enjoy” every moment since his diagnosis, attributing this mindset to the training he received in the Royal Marines, in which he served for five years from the age of 18.

He and three of his friends ran the 32km Edale Horizon in England’s Peak District on September 21 to raise money for Brain Tumor Research, raising more than $27,252 so far, and he hopes “other people can reap its benefits.” future endeavors, saying it was a bucket list item to raise money for a charity.

“People who have commented on how positively I’m responding to this latest bomb, I would attribute a lot of that mindset to what the Marines actually used,” Mr Greenwood said.

“Commando Training was designed so that whatever you have to deal with in life, you can always refer back to it.â€

“For me, it’s about trying to be as normal as possible and there’s a lot of faith in people who say that positivity is a huge benefit in fighting illness and I just can’t figure out how to cope with this other way.â€

To find out more, visit the JustGiving page of Mr. Greenwood here