An 11-year-old girl misdiagnosed with sickness bugs and migraines was assessed by medics about 30 times before being told she had a brain tumour.
Tia Gordon ended up being admitted to hospital as an emergency despite previous trips to GPs, A&E and calls to NHS 111.
Her mother, Imogen Darby, a pharmacy dispenser, said Tia also had her glasses prescription changed four times before the tumour was spotted.
Ms Darby had sought help over a three-year period regarding Tia’s migraines and vomiting, before being told the wait for an MRI scan would be at least eight months.
It was only when Tia’s condition started to affect her balance and ability to walk that she was given an emergency scan. It showed she had a 3.5cm brain tumour.
Tia Gordon, 11, ended up being admitted to hospital as an emergency despite previous trips to GPs, A&E and calls to NHS 111
Ms Darby, from Northampton, said: ‘I was told Tia had stomach bugs and migraines. The first thing I was told, because it was the summer, was that she just needed to drink more water.
‘After probably a year, she got diagnosed with migraines and they gave her paracetamol for that.
‘She was also given another medication for that and her final diagnosis in January this year from paediatrics was migraine with sickness.
‘Over more than three years, I took Tia to doctors, she was refused MRIs, she was refused to be seen by emergency paediatrics, I called 111, I went to A&E, she had her glasses changed four times, she was given medication and she had a consultant, but it took for her to be unable to walk for her to get the care she needed.’
Ms Darby first noticed Tia’s symptoms during the Covid lockdown in March 2020 when Tia started being sick.
It was only when Tia’s condition started to affect her balance and ability to walk that she was given an emergency scan
Tia migraines and vomiting, for three years before being told the wait for an MRI scan would be at least eight months
She was sick every few months, then monthly, then more frequently.
In the few months before the diagnosis, Ms Darby said she took Tia to a GP about 10 times and called NHS 111 about three times.
‘I took her to A&E and I was told she had a stomach bug and told kind of just leave her to it,’ she said.
However, Tia then developed new symptoms, including a stiff neck, which doctors claimed was due to the way she was sleeping and referred her to a physiotherapist.
Deep down, though, Ms Darby felt something was wrong with the way Tia was holding her neck. It was also noticed by wider family.
A scan showed she had a 3.5cm brain tumour. It was a pilocytic astrocytoma – the most common type of childhood brain tumour
Her mother, Imogen Darby, a pharmacy dispenser (pictured left) said Tia also had her glasses prescription changed four times before the tumour was spotted
‘The consultant said she would do an MRI for peace of mind but the waiting list would be months long.’
From then on, Tia was being sick most mornings and vomited every day between November 2023 to January 2024.
In the few days before Tia was admitted to hospital, she also seemed wobbly, including failing to notice she was tipping milk down the front of the kitchen sink.
The following day, Tia’s school phoned Ms Darby while she was at work to say she was holding her neck strangely and was a bit off balance.
She called the paediatric consultant, who told her to take Tia to Northampton General that evening.
While there, Tia was unable to walk in a straight line.
Ms Darby first noticed Tia’s symptoms during the Covid lockdown in March 2020 when Tia started being sick
A CT scan revealed Tia’s tumour, which is a pilocytic astrocytoma – the most common type of childhood brain tumour.
An ambulance was called to take her to Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham.
Tia was operated on over a 10-hour period and the benign tumour was removed.
‘It was quite a horrendous day,’ Ms Darby said. ‘From the surgery, they managed to get 96 per cent of it out.’
Since surgery to remove the growth – which Tia calls her ‘astronaut tumour’ due to it being an astrocytoma – the youngster gets very tired and can still be unbalanced.
Since surgery to remove the growth – which Tia calls her ‘astronaut tumour’ due to it being an astrocytoma – the youngster gets very tired and can still be unbalanced
She will have an MRI scan every three months for the next five years and is undergoing physiotherapy, as well as having regular meetings with neurologists
She will have an MRI scan every three months for the next five years and is undergoing physiotherapy, as well as having regular meetings with neurologists.
Meanwhile, Tia is keen to get back to her activities.
‘We all call her Dr Doolittle, she absolutely loves anything to do with animals,’ Ms Darby said.
‘She likes dodgeball and she loves reading, absolutely loves reading.’
Cameron Miller, director of external affairs and strategy at the Brain Tumour Charity, said: ‘We wish Tia all the best with her continuing treatment and thank Imogen for sharing her story.
‘Sadly, it’s one that we often hear.
‘For many brain tumour patients, it simply takes too long to be diagnosed – and this is one of the reasons why we’re calling for a National Brain Tumour Strategy.’
