Rachael Burns, 22, from Northern Ireland, was given devastating news in May
Rachael Burns, 22, from Northern Ireland, had been suffering from from migraines for several years, but noticed that her symptoms worsened after giving birth to her daughter Raeya, now aged one.
Ms Burns was sent home from an opticians appointment with a ‘dry eye’ and given eye drops and glasses but noticed her condition worsened dramatically to the point that her face became lopsided.
When she was unable to open one eye, Rachael was eventually referred to Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast.
She shared how her ‘world fell apart’ after she was diagnosed with a brain tumour and given just one year left to live.
Rachael said: ‘I was told that the life expectancy of someone with my diagnosis was 12 months, and I had already been showing symptoms for eight.
‘I just didn’t expect to receive news that awful. I’d hoped to maybe have at least a year or two. This hugely affected me mentally. I just sort of crumbled.’
After first experiencing painful symptoms in March 2023, Rachael had to spend a number of days in bed to ease the pressure in her head.
She continued: ‘Specsavers said I had ”dry eye” and was doubly short sighted. I was sent home with eyedrops and glasses which just made me feel dizzier.
‘My eyesight worsened, leading to me walk in front of cars due to the blind spot on my right side. I could no longer take my daughter out of the house on my own as I was so worried I would put her in danger.
‘I felt like I was being dramatic, and this led to me waiting even longer to get help.’
Rachael was finally diagnosed with a brain tumour in May 2024 following a referral to urgent care, but because the tumour is located on Rachael’s brainstem, doctors are unable to operate to remove it.
The 22-year-old is now undertaking 58 sessions of radiotherapy, consisting of 30 sessions on her brain and 28 sessions on her spinal cord.
Rachael added: ‘Some days I’ll wake up and my legs won’t work, and I’ll be crying in agony for hours at a time with the pain.
