A city lawyer who initially thought her headaches were down to job-related stress was left fighting for her life after discovering an aggressive brain tumour. Amy Wareham, 47, saw her world turned upside down after a seizure while visiting New York in May 2023 led to the discovery of two brain lesions.
After being rushed to the New York Presbyterian hospital, scans revealed a grave diagnosis: Amy had glioblastoma multiforme, a notably fast-growing tumour. Her fight against the tumour began with emergency neurosurgery on June 12, 2023.
Amy, an asset manager from London's bustling financial district, has been navigating through radiotherapy and is now nearing the end of chemotherapy. Commenting on her health, Amy said: "At the moment, I am relatively very well. I have come a long way since my first and last seizure in May last year.
"Then, I was very scared and had a whirlwind of appointments and scans. Now, things have calmed down and I am taking it day by day. My last MRI was stable. Aside from quarterly MRI scans, I have Avastin infusions fortnightly and chemotherapy monthly. The chemotherapy thankfully is oral and I have been tolerating it well."
In the wake of the life-altering condition, rather than wedding presents, Amy asked for contributions to The Brain Tumour Charity at her marriage to Bruce in August 2023. Compelled by the ordeal, she's spearheaded fundraising efforts through The Amy Wareham Fund, successfully gathering £90,000 towards research into combating high-grade brain tumours.
She expressed her gratitude, saying: "I have been awed and amazed at the very generous support from my family, friends and professional network. I have organised a charity dinner and auction which several law firms came to from London, Luxembourg and Ireland.
"A lawyer dedicated her Ironman to raising awareness and funds, my work team raised funds doing a walking marathon and my neighbour's children organised a cake sale. I have three people running half marathons or marathons for me. People have been so kind."
After grappling with her diagnosis, Amy was taken aback by the limited treatment options available. She said: "When I discovered the dire lack of funding for research into brain tumours I was appalled.
"Research into more effective treatments is so urgently needed. Before I was diagnosed with glioblastoma, I had never heard of it. It is an understatement to say I was shocked at being told I have glioblastoma grade 4, and that it has an average 12-to-18 month prognosis.
"I was very surprised that I hadn't heard of it, it being the biggest cancer killer of under 40-year-olds, including children, and tenth-biggest overall cancer killer. That's why I set up my own Fund with The Brain Tumour Charity. I immediately knew that I needed to raise money and awareness."
The Brain Tumour Charity has stepped up with a ground-breaking 'Quest for Cures' grant, a hefty £1.5million investment to propel research that could transform treatment options for glioblastoma, which is the very type of tumour Amy is battling. Amy has thrown her support behind the charity's bold move to confront the aggressive tumour, for which there is no current cure and whose treatments have stagnated for over two decades.
Dr Simon Newman, The Brain Tumour Charity's chief scientific officer, said: "Finding new ways to treat glioblastoma is essential if we are to accelerate a cure for this devastating disease. We know that brain tumour treatment is difficult because drugs often cannot get into the brain to target the tumour cell."
