A mother-of-three didn’t know it was a rare brain cancer while thinking a whirring sound in her right ear was tinnitus – not until she was diagnosed by doctor.
How it All Started
Denise Wingfield, 55, was struggling to sleep as a result of the dull, ‘funny’ noise from her ear.
She was then referred to an ear, nose and throat specialist, who told her she was only suffering from tinnitus – a name for hearing noises that do not come from an outside source – victim may hear a ringing, buzzing or hissing sound in one or both ears, or in their head.
What Doctor Discovered
But following an MRI, doctors found an anomaly on her brain and doctor recommended a nine hour awake craniotomy for her.
After a month, she underwent the procedure, and was diagnosed with grade 2 oligodendroglioma – a rare brain tumour.
Ms Wingfield had a further surgery following complications from the craniotomy, as well as six weeks of radiotherapy and four rounds of chemotherapy.
She is still under doctor’s care and supervision after a recent scan in January 2024 showed the tumour had grown.
She is Now a Brain Tumor Survivor
Ms Wingfield, a previous kitchen assistant at a care home, said: ‘I had no symptoms other than a funny noise in my ear.
‘When I tried to sleep at night it seemed louder although it was there all the time – I never for a moment imagined it was caused by a brain tumour.
‘Due to my tumour being slow growing, my medical team want to wait for further growth before they place me on another treatment plan – including a less brutal version of chemotherapy.
‘Although it’s scary to know that it is still growing, I am being scanned.’
