A British girl was told she had a mass growing in her brain just 12 hours after having a routine eye test.
Mum Katie Nicholls suffered every parent’s worst nightmare when her little girl, Phoebe Carpenter, was diagnosed with a brain tumour.
It all began with the tot experiencing frequent bouts of sickness, coupled with severe headaches.
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After months of the symptoms continuing with no let up, the pair sought medical advice; though was repeatedly told it was a migraine.
Katie, aged 41, began keeping a record of the five-year-old’s decline and ultimately decided to visit Specsavers opticians for an eye test.
The next day, though, the truth was revealed – and their worlds came crashing down instantly.
“I kept asking if Phoebe would survive,” the mum, from St Neots, Cambridgeshire, told Need To Know.
“The doctors said they were unable to answer that at the time, which is the worst thing in the world as a parent.
“I fell apart and just sobbed.”
Phoebe’s aforementioned symptoms began in February 2026.
Three months later, after the optician’s appointment, they were told to go straight to A&E at Addenbrooke’s Hospital.
While there, they performed a CT scan, which revealed the brain tumour.
She said “I felt like we were probably wasting the hospital’s time because Phoebe was running around and playing like normal.
“But, looking back, she was probably the sickest kid there.”
To relieve pressure on her brain caused by the buildup of cerebrospinal fluid, known as hydrocephalus, she had a drain inserted.
She then underwent a resection, in which most of the tumour was removed, and confirmed it was a pilocystic astrocytoma.
This is a slow-growing mass which begins from star-shaped support cells within the brain.
Now, although she’s not completely out of the woods, Phoebe is thriving.
She will have her first checkup MRI scan in November and the family are praying for good news.
Phoebe and her mum, Katie, are working with Brain Tumour Research to raise awareness and to call on the Government to increase funding into research.
She added: “Phoebe is amazing.
“She went back to school three weeks after her operation, doing a few hours at first, then going back for a few days.
“By the end of term, she had done a full week.
“Phoebe now wears glasses, which are mega strong, but she’s very comfortable wearing them.
“Being told she had a brain tumour was the worst feeling in the world – but now we feel so incredibly lucky because it could’ve been a whole different story.
“She could’ve needed treatment such as chemotherapy or radiotherapy, but she didn’t need that.
“If it’s just that she now has bad eyesight and wears glasses, then so be it.
“Thankfully, she hasn’t lost any of her cheeky character.
“She’s still the same as she was – probably even a little bit cheekier now.
“We’re hopeful this is the end of it, but we’ve seen how quickly life can change.
“You never think something like this will happen to you; but it does.”
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