Dad who suffered 'migraines' saved as eye test spots cancer

Richard Brannan, 34, had been prescribed painkillers by his GP who mistakenly thought he was suffering from migraines triggered by sleepless nights.  But after popping into a Tesco opticians

while shopping he was shocked to learn he had a rare tumour known as a craniopharyngioma.  Now he will have surgery to remove it and will also need radiotherapy.  Richard said: “I don’t

think there are words that can really thank the optometrist enough.  “When doctors tell you something you accept it but they are human and they have to make decisions based on symptoms. 

“But if you feel that something is not right then get a second, third or even fourth opinion." Richard, a British Gas team leader from Edinburgh, began getting headaches in September

last year while with his teacher wife Mhairi, also 34, and their daughters Ellis, four, and Erin, 18 months.  He said: “The pain was crippling and I felt I was going to be sick. I am in

quite a stressful job and under a lot of pressure from different aspects.  “I only went to the doctor because I am a self-proclaimed hypochondriac and I Googled my symptoms which had

included occasional blurry vision.  “It came up with a brain tumour and panicked. But the doctor asked about my circumstances and I said I had two small children in the house.  “He said I

was probably not sleeping well and that it was probably migraines brought on by a multitude of things. I went away with medication but it never worked. Eventually I was doing my weekly food

shop in Tesco and I thought, ‘I’m going to go in and see if they have any optician appointments’.  THE DOG THAT SNIFFED OUT BABY'S CANCER “I was still getting headaches. It was because

of the conversation that I had with the optometrist that she referred me.”  Tests revealed an irregular pulse in one eye and a reduction in peripheral vision so he was sent for a brain scan.

  Richard said: “I knew something was wrong. The consultant said that it was not an aggressive tumour... that it was a small tumour on the pituitary gland.”  “Then I got a phone call from

one of the doctors saying it was characteristically benign.”  Craniopharyngioma is a slow growing tumour that can affect hormones and eyesight, due to pressure on the optical nerve.  It can

also lead to blackouts and seizures and needs to be removed to ease symptoms.