North Wales woman urges Senedd to act on brain cancer research after husband’s diagnosis
A North Wales woman is urging the Senedd to take action on brain cancer research after her husband was diagnosed with an incurable brain tumour at the age of 34.
Joshua Smith, a machinist at Tritech from Wrexham, was diagnosed with a glioblastoma in January after a scan found a 4.5cm mass on his brain.
Glioblastoma is an aggressive form of brain tumour with a prognosis of 12 to 18 months.
According to the charity Brain Tumour Research, around 3,200 people in the UK are diagnosed with one each year, a third survive beyond 12 months, and treatments have not improved in more than two decades.
Joshua and his wife Kelly are supporting the charity’s manifesto for Wales, It’s Time to do Things Differently, which says no brain cancer patients were recruited to clinical trials in Wales between 2019 and 2024.
Joshua began experiencing severe headaches and episodes of confusion earlier this year.
Kelly said: “In January, Joshua started complaining of what seemed like brain fog. Then one night he developed an excruciating migraine and said it felt like his head was going to explode. The pain lasted for days.
“I took him to the GP because I knew something wasn’t right. Joshua never goes to the doctor. I remember saying there were red flags, but we were told there was nothing to worry about.
“Days later, I took him to A&E in Wrexham because his symptoms were getting worse. We were sent home with morphine and told to come back if things deteriorated.”
In the early hours of the next morning, Kelly insisted Joshua return to hospital rather than go to work as planned.
This time a CT scan revealed the mass on his brain.
Kelly said: “Hearing those words was terrifying. You know something is wrong, but you never expect it to be that. When they told us it wasn’t cancer, we felt hopeful.
“Then the next day they came back and apologised. It was cancer after all. We were devastated. It felt like we’d been lifted up and then completely crushed.”
Joshua was referred to The Walton Centre in Liverpool, where surgeons confirmed the mass was a glioblastoma.
In February, surgeons removed around 95% of the tumour, and Joshua went on to have six weeks of radiotherapy alongside chemotherapy, with treatment continuing in the months ahead.
Kelly said: “When Josh woke up from surgery, the first thing he did was ring me and ask for a KFC Bargain Bucket. I told him he could have whatever he wanted. Amazingly, he was walking and talking within 24 hours and was home within three days.
“It’s incredible, but it almost makes it harder to process because everything looks normal when it’s not.”
Kelly raised more than £2,000 in May by walking 200km to support the charity’s research centre at the University of Nottingham.
Brain Tumour Research is calling for a national annual research spend of £35 million, more clinical trials and better access to new treatments for glioblastoma patients.
Dr Karen Noble, director of research policy and innovation at Brain Tumour Research, said: “Joshua’s story reflects the devastating reality faced by so many families across the UK.
“We are calling on the Government to increase the national investment in research into brain tumours, including glioblastoma.”
Donations to the Glioblastoma Awareness Week Appeal can be made at braintumourresearch.org/glioblastoma-awareness-week.
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