City Attorney Amy Wareham innocently assumed that the occasional headaches were a natural result of her demanding and stressful job.
But the real cause of the 47-year-old’s pain was a fast-growing brain tumor, which kills most people within a year and a half.
Apart from the headaches, Mrs Wareham had no other complaints until she suffered an attack during a trip to New York last May, during which she fell and hit her face.
She was immediately taken to hospital, where scans revealed the London lawyer had two tumours on her brain.
Further investigation revealed that Mrs. Wareham had a difficult-to-treat form of cancer, glioblastoma multiforme. A month later, she had the cancer removed by surgery.
Mrs Wareham had no symptoms other than the headaches until she suffered an attack during a trip to New York last May, during which she fell and hit her face.
After surgery to remove the tumor, she also underwent radiation therapy and chemotherapy in an attempt to kill any small remnants of cancer that she had missed during surgery.
The shock of her diagnosis also inspired Mrs Wareham to raise money and set up a support group called The Amy Wareham Fund, which has raised £90,000 for research into high-grade brain tumours. She is pictured here with her son
After the surgery, she also underwent radiation therapy and chemotherapy in an attempt to kill any small remnants of cancer that she may have missed during the operation.
Now that chemotherapy is almost over, Mrs Wareham said: ‘I am doing relatively well at the moment. I have come a long way since my first and last attack in May last year.
‘I was very scared then and had a whirlwind of appointments and scans. Now it’s calmer and I’m taking it day by day.’
Following her diagnosis and surgery, Mrs. Wareham married her current husband, Bruce, in August 2023.
In lieu of gifts, donations were requested to The Brain Tumour Charity.
The shock of her diagnosis also inspired her to start a fundraising campaign, setting up a donation group called The Amy Wareham Fund, which has raised £90,000 for research into serious brain tumours.
Mrs Wareham said: ‘I have been impressed and amazed by the very generous support from my family, friends and professional network.
‘I organised a charity dinner and auction which attracted several law firms from London, Luxembourg and Ireland.
‘A lawyer dedicated her Ironman to raising awareness and money, my work team raised money by holding a walking marathon, and my neighbor’s kids organized a bake sale.
“I have three people running half marathons or marathons for me. People are so nice.”
Ms Wareham said she was shocked to learn she had been diagnosed with glioblastoma, with limited treatment options for the cancer.
She said: ‘When I discovered that there was such a huge gap in funding for brain tumour research, I was shocked.
As Mrs Wareham, pictured here with her mother, neared the end of her chemotherapy, she said she would take it ‘one day at a time’
Wanted star Tom Parker passed away in March 2022 after a year-and-a-half battle with stage four brain cancer, at just 33 years old (pictured December 2021)
Former Labour politician Dame Tessa Jowell died in 2018 after a battle with advanced glioblastoma brain cancer (pictured in the House of Lords in 2018)
John McCain battled glioblastoma, the most aggressive form of brain cancer, for 10 months (pictured here in 2007)
The disease also claimed the life of Beau Biden, the son of President Joe Biden. Pictured: Then-US Vice President Biden next to his army captain son Beau in Baghdad in 2009
‘There is an urgent need for research into more effective treatments.
‘Before I was diagnosed with glioblastoma, I had never heard of it.
“To say I was shocked when I was told I had grade 4 glioblastoma, and that the average prognosis is 12 to 18 months, is an understatement.
‘I was very surprised that I had never heard of it before. It is the leading cause of death in people under 40, including children. It is also the tenth leading cause of death overall.
‘That’s why I set up my own fund with The Brain Tumour Charity. I knew straight away that I had to raise money and awareness.’
Dr Simon Newman, Scientific Director at The Brain Tumour Charity, said: ‘Finding new ways to treat glioblastoma is essential if we are to cure this devastating disease more quickly.
‘We know that treating brain tumors is difficult because the drugs often cannot reach the brain to attack the tumor cells.
‘By using new and innovative approaches to ensure that treatments reach the brain, we are moving closer to finding more effective treatments.’
Glioblastoma is an aggressive form of brain cancer that affects 3,200 people in the UK each year.
It is the most common form of cancerous brain tumor in adults and the prognosis is extremely poor.
Only five percent of patients, approximately one in twenty, are still alive five years after diagnosis.
Wanted star Tom Parker died in March 2022 at the age of 33 after a year-and-a-half battle with stage four brain cancer caused by glioblastoma.
Former Labour politician Dame Tessa Jowell also died in 2018 from advanced glioblastoma in the brain.
