Salisbury duo seeking to give Brain Tumour Charity vital boost
Gav Burden and Louise Worthington are both brain tumour survivors.
Over 12,000 people are diagnosed with a brain tumour each year in the UK, according to the Brain Tumour Charity.
That works out at 34 people every day.
Gav Burden and Louise Worthington are Brain Tumour survivors from Salisbury and they're aiming to give the charity a boost by raising £25,000 by walking 25km.
They're also hoping to raise awareness of the illness, which can exhibit different symptoms.
Headaches, blurred vision and stroke-like symptoms
While Gav's symptoms included headaches and blurred vision, Louise's were similar to a stroke.
"My symptoms were mainly numbness and seizures," she told Greatest Hits Radio, adding: "I was having a lot of what I now know are focal seizures.
"My muscles, would just go to spasm down the left side of my whole body and I'd be slightly incapacitated for about 30 seconds."
Louise told us that as the symptoms weren't present when she spoke to doctors, it led them to say she was fine, meaning she had a bit of denial about what might truly have been wrong with her.
Eventually, her diagnosis was confirmed and her tumour, which she named 'Bob' was removed at Southampton General Hospital.
It's thought that brain tumours reduce life expectancy by 27 years.
Gav's been living with his for 28 years, having been diagnosed in the 1990's. He told us that research has come a long way since then, meaning people who are diagnosed are better equipped to deal with it.
"I left hospital with very little information," he said, "I had a brain tumour liaison nurse, I didn't have anything else.
"Nowadays, you would be given an abundance of information, support and everything you need to help you."
Making memories as part of a team
Gav bucks the trend somewhat, having lived with his tumour as long as he has, as the Brain Tumour Charity says 12% of survivors live beyond five years of their diagnosis.
And that's what's helped inspire the walk that he and Lou are taking on.
They're taking on the 25km Thames Bridges Trek on September 14th and want others to join them.
They'll start their trek from Bishops Park in Fulham, with the walk expected to take between four to seven hours.
"We want to build a team to have a great laugh, make memories and new friends," Gav said, who adds that he hopes it will allow people to share their own experiences.
People can join their team by contacting Gav and Lou at loungav25kwalk@gmail.com, where they'll provide the step-by-step guide on signing up.
We can also support their efforts by donating through their justgiving page.