Sue Pitts

My daughter wrote this after being diagnosed with a brain tumour in 2013. Diagnosed July 2013 & died 24.2.16 aged 19 years 5 days. Original diagnosis grade 3 Anaplastic Astrocytoma this mutated to a grade 4 glioblastoma Imagine having to think about possibly dying, being in a situation where you don’t know the outcome. It’s awful and as a teenage girl the whole situation was impacted more by the media. Always seeing ‘beautiful’ girls in magazines, with long hair and skinny waists. It was heart wrenching when I had to think about shaving my head because I was going to lose my hair anyway. It was even worse when I put on two stone due to taking steroids to stop the excruciating pain in my head. I felt horrible and could not bear to look in the mirror. Every time I tried to put on my clothes, they were too tight and would not button up. I felt so disgusting and ugly being left with a bloated face and body. I hated my balding head which was patchy all over. My skin was covered in spots and scars from various needles and operations. I was meant to be starting college and making a new start for myself after my hard time at school. Sitting in hospitals and taking 50 tablets a day was not normal, but I adjusted to it being a part of my life. I remember receiving my disabled badge and trying to justify in my head what I did to deserve this. I felt like a loner and did not have much contact with the outside world. The only contact would occasionally be a trip into town. Doing this was a struggle physically and mentally. I would get tired easily and could not walk far because of this. I felt miserable seeing other girls living their lives and being ‘normal’. I was jealous of others; I wanted hair, good health and normality. The contents of my handbag a few months earlier were a hairbrush, chewing gum and a mirror. The contents of my handbag now are a set of hearing aids, disabled badge, medication and a pair of glasses. Every month is brain cancer awareness month, not just in March. This fight never stops. The big difference with our charity is that we self-fund. 100% of donations go directly to research at Charlotte's Lab, King's College Hospital, London. We have no salaries, overheads, advertising, or merchandise just the story of a brave and wonderful young woman shared through her YouTube channel. We pay our own expenses, including PayPal & PO Box fees, so your donations truly make a difference.If you’re thinking of donating to a charity, please consider us.  If you can donate that would be amazing but otherwise a RT would be much appreciated. charlottesbag.com/