An ex-Royal Engineer whose brain tumours were missed as a teenager has been told he will die before he reaches 40.
Ben Robinson, 27, of Gloucestershire, was just 19 when he collapsed during an army training camp in 2015 and suffered his first seizure.
Scans revealed he had pinhead-sized lesions in his brain, which doctors believed were the early stages of tumours and said he had weeks to live.
But confusion ensued months later when further medical tests saw Mr Robinson re-diagnosed with epilepsy.
Doctors were baffled when his seizures became more severe, despite upping his medication every year. By 2020, he was suffering one every month and had to be discharged from the army on medical grounds.
A particularly bad fit that September prompted doctors to run the brain scans again, revealing three lesions had grown to the size of ‘golf balls’.
Tests also showed the growths were cancerous and mostly inoperable. Mr Robinson was dealt the devastating news that he now has just 10 years to live.
Ben Robinson, from Gloucestershire, was diagnosed with epilepsy after a seizure when he was 19 years old. But doctors re-diagnosed him five years later with brain cancer. He was discharged from the army and is now receiving treatment (right)
Mr Robinson, pictured above, served tours in Kenya and the Falklands. Doctors had said he had a deadly brain cancer when he was 19 years old, but revised that diagnosis within a week
He now works as a DJ part-time and recently got engaged to his partner Kelly White, 28, who is a personal assistant. The pair plan to go travelling before getting married
Mr Robinson has been diagnosed with a rare brain cancer, called oligodendroglioma, which occurs when fatty cells lining neurons divide uncontrollably.
The former soldier has had 90 per cent of one of the tumours removed surgically, but two others have been deemed inoperable due to their location.
His treatment will now focus on chemotherapy to manage his cancer.
Mr Robinson said it was a ‘big relief’ when doctors first ruled out the cancer in 2015.
‘For about a week I thought I didn’t have long to live so when doctors said it was epilepsy, that was a big relief,’ he said.
‘The lesions were initially described as “birth marks” on my brain and started off the size of a pinhead.
‘By the time I had surgery, they were huge in comparison, the size of golf balls.’
But he admitted the confusion around his diagnosis has been ‘hard’.
‘It’s hard to get your head round being told you have a brain tumour, let alone being given a limited amount of time to live,’ he added.
‘I have learnt to accept it and I’m at peace with it.
‘It puts things into perspective and has encouraged me to use my positive mindset to help others who are struggling with their own diagnosis and mental health in general.’
Mr Robinson was discharged from the army in 2020 on medical grounds after serving tours in Kenya and the Falklands.
He now works as a part-time DJ, and will take to the decks in Cheltenham this month for a charity fundraiser supporting people with brain cancer.
Mr Robinson has also proposed to his partner Kelly White, 28 and a personal assistant.
The couple plan to go travelling before getting married.
Mr Robinson is pictured above in hospital during his treatment (left), and after being discharged following surgery (right)
Mr Robinson and his partner are pictured together above on holiday. They plan to travel more together before getting married
Mr Robinson said: ‘I’m lucky to have the people I do around me. Everyone is supportive and has stuck with me throughout my diagnosis.
‘Kelly and I are excited about our life together and can’t wait to get married.’
Up to 200 guests are expected for the fundraiser organised by Brain Tumour Research as part of its ‘Wear A Hat’ day campaign.
The event — which gets attendees to wear their favourite hat — is now in its 13th year and has raised more than £2million for brain cancer research.
Mel Tiley, community development manager at Brain Tumour Research, said: ‘We wish Ben well in his ongoing treatment and are grateful to him for sharing his story.
‘The effort that Ben and Kelly are going to for their fundraising event is fantastic, especially as he is going through chemotherapy treatment at the same time.
‘Ben’s story reminds us of the indiscriminate nature of this awful disease.’