Whittlesey dad’s fight against deadly Cyril

Martin Brunning (51) was diagnosed with having the Glioma tumour - which only about five people in every 100,000 are diagnosed with, earlier this year after he collapsed at the end of 2018.

Despite surgery and the best efforts of doctors, he has been told he has about 16 months to live.

But Martin, from Whittlesey, has decided to tell his story with a blog on Facebook, joking with followers about his new hairstyle following radiotherapy treatment - described as being like Hitler’s by his wife, and the fancy dress funeral he has planned.

He has even named the deadly tumour ‘Cyril the A***hole’, saying ‘I was fed up calling it a growth or a tumour, and I don’t know anyone called Cyril, so it wouldn’t offend anyone. When I told my daughter it was called Cyril, she said ‘the a***hole.’

Martin said the first time he had known something was wrong was when he collapsed at home. He said: “I had a seizure in October last year. I have never had epilepsy before, but I just keeled over. I woke up in Peterborough City Hospital with my wife, Susie, and daughter standing over me.

“I was diagnosed with a Glioma cancerous brain tumour in December. As you can imagine, it was not a good Christmas.

“I started writing, just to clear my mind. My wife thought the posts were funny, and a few mates asked me to send it to them, so I carried on.

“I do it 50 per cent to help me cope with it, and 50 per cent to help other people.

“The light hearted approach started early. I was in hospital, connected to a lot of wires and machines and my drip, and I really needed a pee.

“I got up, unplugged myself and went.
“When I came out of the toilet, a nurse had come running in, holding a defibrillator. I was there, one hand holding the drip, one hand adjusting the hospital gown to protect my modesty. She was shocked because all the machines had stopped, because I’d unplugged them. She was out of breath, and told me I just needed to press the button for help.”

Martin was also keen to praise the work of the NHS during his journey. He said: “Everyone has been fantastic. I can’t say enough about how amazing they have been, right from day one.

“We are so lucky to have the NHS here.”

Martin is now planning on turning his blog into a book - and he has also signed up to take part in a new medical research project looking at his condition.

He said: “The cancer I have is very rare, and when they asked if I wanted to take part in something, I said yes. Only about five people in 100,000 get this form of cancer.

“I just want to help people.

“One woman contacted me about my blog, saying her husband has the same condition, but he wouldn’t talk about it. She said she could find out what he was going through thanks to what I write.

“Just being able to help one person like that meant a lot to me.

“If the blog can help people, it might be able to help more people as a book.”

To find Martin’s blog, search for Cyril the A***hole on Facebook.