{"id":337461,"date":"2026-03-13T16:17:10","date_gmt":"2026-03-13T16:17:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/337461\/"},"modified":"2026-03-13T16:17:10","modified_gmt":"2026-03-13T16:17:10","slug":"worried-parent-navigating-a-health-crisis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/337461\/","title":{"rendered":"Worried Parent: Navigating a Health Crisis"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tasha\u2019s diagnosis<\/p>\n

One day, almost 20 years ago, a worried parent from Bedfordshire\u00a0searched online for\u00a0advice and information\u00a0about brain tumours.\u00a0It was 2007 and Shona Floyd\u2019s\u00a0daughter,\u00a0Natasha,\u00a0known as Tasha,\u00a0had been\u00a0diagnosed\u00a0with an inoperable brain tumour.\u00a0As she was in the middle of her GCSEs, Tasha\u2019s symptoms had initially been put down to exam stress:\u00a0headaches, tiredness and\u00a0problems with her vision.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

But as she\u2019d\u00a0gained a place at college, the Saturday before term started, Shona took her for a routine eye check<\/a> to ensure her reading glasses prescription was up to date. The ophthalmologist noticed Natasha\u2019s retinas were bulging and\u00a0advised her to\u00a0go to A&E.\u00a0<\/p>\n

At hospital, a brain scan showed\u00a0Natasha had a large\u00a0build-up\u00a0of fluid round her brain causing an increase in intracranial pressure. It was later diagnosed as a diffuse midline glioma<\/a> \u2013 known at the time as a DIPG. This was unusual in someone in their later teens. And the prognosis was not good at 12 to 18 months. In fact, Tasha lived to be 24.<\/p>\n

A call for help<\/p>\n

Shona said: \u201c\u201cTasha was 16 and a\u00a0half and\u00a0had been otherwise happy and healthy. As a military family, she went to a boarding\u00a0school,\u00a0so we relied on other people to care for her. All of a\u00a0sudden,\u00a0she had a\u00a0brain tumour diagnosis and\u00a0was left with\u00a0less than 10 per cent vision.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u00a0felt like I needed to talk to somebody\u00a0and I\u00a0just Googled\u00a0\u2018who can help me with a brain tumour\u2019 or something like that.\u00a0The\u00a0Samantha Dickson Brain Tumour Trust came up\u00a0top,\u00a0and I\u00a0rang the number, spoke to a wonderful person and the rest, as they say, is history.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile you have beautiful support from friends, family, and colleagues, I\u00a0kind of felt\u00a0quite alone. So, to be able to speak to somebody who told me,\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0not alone, was\u00a0just amazing.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Invaluable support<\/p>\n

When she rang a second time, Shona spoke to the same person who had \u201ca wonderful way about her\u201d and provided continuity. It meant Shona\u00a0didn\u2019t\u00a0have to explain herself all over again.\u00a0<\/p>\n

She was sent links to webpages and invited to attend information days. The Trust went on to become The Brain Tumour Charity, and Tasha became one of its first Young Ambassadors.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"TashaTasha with singer and actor Martin Kemp at a HeadSmart event<\/p>\n

Paying it forward<\/p>\n

Ten years later, Shona started working for the charity that helped her\u00a0\u2013 and\u00a0she\u2019s\u00a0still here today\u00a0in\u00a0a vital role. <\/p>\n

You can watch our interview with her here:<\/p>\n

Shona said: \u201cNeil and Angela\u2019s amazing work\u00a0\u2013\u00a0because of their sad loss\u00a0\u2013\u00a0has made such a difference.\u00a0I\u2019m\u00a0paying that\u00a0forward\u00a0in working here as Healthcare Engagement Manager.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Her team includes Optical Engagement Manager Lorcan Butler<\/a>. Between them, they help give\u00a0healthcare professionals\u00a0and eye specialists the confidence to recognise\u00a0the signs and symptoms of\u00a0brain tumours. That way, they aim to speed up referral for scans and eventual diagnosis.\u00a0Her motivation? Tasha\u2019s legacy.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cBy getting people referred for scans\u00a0earlier\u00a0we want to ensure people have that bit of extra\u00a0time. Not only to put their affairs in order but\u00a0so that people have got time\u00a0either to live a very long life or one without\u00a0a hearing\u00a0loss,\u00a0or\u00a0a sight loss because the tumour has grown much bigger \u2013 and it\u2019s\u00a0a\u00a0quality\u00a0life for the time that they have left. That for me is Tasha\u2019s legacy.<\/p>\n

If Tasha\u2019s symptoms had been taken seriously sooner, we\u00a0wouldn\u2019t\u00a0have changed her diagnosis or prognosis, but she may not have lost her eyesight.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shona<\/p>\n

\u201cDue to raised intracranial pressure, her optic nerves were damaged, and this left her with less than 10% vision which consisted of just light & dark.\u00a0Nevertheless, she embraced her disability, learning to cope with all the daily challenges life threw at her. Not only did she cope with the harsh treatment needed but she never stopped smiling and making those around her smile.<\/p>\n

Launching HeadSmart<\/p>\n

\u201cAlthough she struggled with her diagnosis, one day Tasha said:\u00a0\u201cI went to bed blind and with cancer and I will wake up blind and with cancer so I might as well just get on with it.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cTasha had a determination beyond many of her own age and an indomitable spirit. She had the utter belief that she could change brain tumour survival rates by telling her story.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Tasha\u2019s\u00a0accomplishments in her short life are astonishing. She became the\u00a0inaugural visually impaired National Boccia champion in March 2011.\u00a0She\u00a0also helped to launch The Brain Tumour Charity\u2019s\u00a0HeadSmart<\/a>\u00a0campaign \u2013 raising awareness of the vital need to recognise symptoms earlier.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"TashaTasha with Tom Daley<\/p>\n

\"TashaTasha with Lewis Moody<\/p>\n

\"TashaTasha and her mum Shona<\/p>\n

She studied part time to get the Maths GCSE that enabled her to go to university.\u00a0She\u00a0took a lead role in launching The Brain Tumour Charity\u2019s five-year strategy, Defeating Brain Tumours, in which she talked passionately about the power of hope.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not ready to give up,\u201d she said. \u201cI will never accept there is no hope.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

And, ultimately, Tasha\u00a0selflessly\u00a0donated her brain to research.\u00a0Who knows whether that\u00a0will\u00a0hold part of the answer to finding cures for those people still suffering.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

We are hugely grateful to Shona for her energy, expertise, sense of humour and the passion she brings to her role at The Brain Tumour Charity.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Get support<\/p>\n

If you need someone to talk to or advice on where to get help, our Support and Information team is available by phone, email or live-chat.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Tasha\u2019s diagnosis One day, almost 20 years ago, a worried parent from Bedfordshire\u00a0searched online for\u00a0advice and information\u00a0about brain…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":337462,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[165537,165538,163,85,46,165539],"class_list":["post-337461","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-brain-tumour-awareness-month","tag-btam","tag-health","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-tasha"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/337461","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=337461"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/337461\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/337462"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=337461"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=337461"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=337461"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}