David Lee Robinson

About

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1999

In 1999 David was a college student. In April of that year he headed a football and developed headaches which were, at first, thought to be a result of concussion. However, to his family and friends' shock he was diagnosed as having a brain tumour. The type was Medulloblastoma a very rare but very aggressive tumour and was found to be in the posterior fossa (back of the brain).

David had an operation to remove the tumour at the Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham, UK. As a result of the operation most of the tumour was successfully removed. However, some residual tumour tissue remained as it was very close to nerve cells in the brain.

David then underwent gruelling radiotherapy treatment receiving the maximum dosage possible over a seven week period yet he continued with his studies and part-time work in the face of some very uncomfortable side effects. He was sick throughout his therapy and lost his hair, unfortunately, did not grow back fully at the sites which received the highest doses of radiotherapy but he remained strong and positive and did not falter.

During 2001 he met his now wife, Almina, who had attended the same college as him and had liked him for a long time!

2005

In 2005, having just completed a law degree, whilst on holiday with Almina, David began having headaches and feeling unsteady and after many doctor and hospital visits, and persistence from Almina that he be examined further, their world was shattered when a scan revealed that David's tumour had returned in the same place. Despite this devastating diagnosis, David and Almina, together with the support of their families and friends saw David undergo another operation which appeared to remove all the tumour. Six gruelling months of chemotherapy followed with both David and Almina spending long hours at the hospital whilst David underwent treatment. Almina was training to be a lawyer at the time and spent all her annual leave entitlement on accompanying David at his treatment.

2009

In 2009, Almina and David, settled in their own home for over two years were planning to get married and soon start a family having both completed years of tough studies and training; David was a trainee police officer and Almina now a qualified lawyer when their world came crashing around them yet again as David began developing blurry vision and Almina again urged the doctors to look further into the issue as she suspected something other than poor eyesight was to blame. One day whilst with friends, David suddenly developed speech problems and was unable to put together comprehensible sentences. Rushed to hospital, a large tumour was discovered, this time at the front of his brain.

Long and painful hours and days followed with Almina by David's bedside as the doctors worked out what to do. Once again, David underwent brain surgery at the Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham which removed most of the tumour but left a small part which could not be removed without causing blindness and both David and Almina eventually went home with David having lost his sense of smell but hopeful that decisions about the small residual tumour would soon be made.

A week following discharge, David and Almina returned to discuss treatment of the small remaining tissue and were completely unprepared by the shattering news that doctors had now noticed two further tumours in his brain! What they believed was leftover tissue in the original site at the back of his head was in fact a new growth and a further tumour in the middle of his brain was discovered from a scan performed a week following surgery. The diagnosis was that the doctors were no longer looking to cure David and that he would only be able to receive palliative treatment from here on to make him comfortable for as long as possible.

Months of tears and pain followed with David remaining strong in the face of this devastating news at the age of 28 and Almina continued searching the world for possible treatment whilst doctors worked on what would be the best chemotherapy to enable David to retain a good quality of life for as long as possible.

In August 2009, David and Almina were happy, despite the difficult times ahead, to discover that they would be parents by May 2010. Their baby girl is due 12 May 2010, 4 days before David's 29th Birthday.

In November 2009, David began taking chemotherapy tablets and felt unwell and weak and despite best efforts to attend, was forced to stay home from his police training due to the effects of the treatment and the fact that he was now unable to use his right arm to write or do things he used to be able to. He was also increasingly unsteady and had to give up football which, for someone who played 3 to 4 times a week, was very difficult.

2010

In January 2010, doctors discovered that the chemotherapy treatment had failed and that not only had all three brain tumours grown throughout the treatment but had now spread further and David had a fourth tumour in his spine.

David has now begun a second chemotherapy treatment requiring long hours at the hospital in the hope that this may slow the tumours down. However, David is always mindful of the fact that any treatment will not be curative and that there is no proven treatment for brain tumours which have recurred.

Looking ahead, David has been offered a place on a clinical trial at The Duke hospital in Durham, North Carolina, USA as long as his symptoms remain stable following current chemotherapy treatment. The treatment is a biological gene treatment for adults suffering from a recurrent Medulloblastoma (the brain tumour David has) where other treatment has failed, in the hope of prolonging or improving the quality of life for this aggressive disease.