A mum diagnosed with a rare brain tumour says she wishes Davina McCall well – but worries for “normal people” who can’t afford a private scan. Kimberley Baggley, 27, was diagnosed with a grade 3 astrocytoma – a rare, aggressive, and malignant brain tumour – in June 2023.
On November 15, TV presenter Davina McCall announced she had been diagnosed with a benign colloid cyst on her brain, which was spotted during a routine body scan. Kimberley received a craniotomy, like Davina, and described it as the “scariest thing I ever had to face”.
As she prepares for her final round of chemotherapy, Kimberley says she’s glad Davina’s story will help to spread awareness of brain tumours. But says there isn’t a lot of information available for “normal” people who “need to go back and forth to their GP”.
Mum-of-one Kimberley, a primary school teacher from Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, said: “Davina, in a way, has been very, very lucky – she was offered a private scan. But normal people, like me, can’t afford that.
“If I could get one piece of information out there to ‘normal people’, it would be: ‘stay confident, and know about tumours’. Research tumours, go to the doctors and say: ‘I’m not giving up’.”
Kimberley began suffering a migraine at work and was sent home. She started to experience tingling pain in her face, so went to her local doctor and A&E department around five times, but says she was sent away with painkillers.
But, after a week in bed, Kimberley’s husband, Luke, took their son, George, to swimming – when they came home Kimberley was in bed unconscious after having a seizure. An MRI and CT scan at the Royal Stoke University Hospital, Stoke-on-Trent, revealed she had a tumour on her brain. In the same month, she underwent a craniotomy – a removal of part of the bone from the skull to expose the brain for surgery.
“It’s probably one of the scariest things I’ve ever have to face – so I know how Davina feels,” she said. “But it is doable – I got through it, and so will she. There is light at the end of the tunnel.”
The surgery was successful and doctors managed to remove 95 per cent of Kimberley’s tumour. She has since completed 33 rounds of radiotherapy and is just about to undergo her eleventh round of chemotherapy. Having “come out of the other side” herself – she says she has plenty of advice for Davina.
“I’d like to encourage Davina to stay positive and cheerful – keep that wonderful sense of humour,” she added. “Remember, you’re a human, not a statistic.”
Kimberley appreciates Davina opening up. “This is going to bring more light to brain tumours,” she said.
“The first thing I thought of was, as awful as it is, they’ve explained the procedure on the lunchtime news, they’ve explained how many people are diagnosed each year. The word is out there.”
After a year-and-a-half of treatment, Kimberley says she’s “finally” starting to feel better. She now can’t wait to “get back to the old me” and finish treatment.