Thank you for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page in memory of David Dobson, or Dad, as he was better known to Matt and I. The purpose of this page is not only to remember our dad but to hopefully help raise awareness of such a cruel disease and help raise some money in order to support research so that one day a similar diagnosis does not lead to a similar story to Dads.

On June 27th, 2017 Dad's battle with his illness finally ended and he passed away peacefully at home surrounded by his family and supported by his wife, Carole.

This story only began last December 2016. Although very active and incredibly sharp, it was around this time the family started to notice some changes in dad. At first it was just little things and mainly around his short-term memory. He seemed to forget little things and become a little confused.

During the Christmas period this became a lot more noticeable. Tasks that were once so easy were now a challenge and he started to forget things a lot more.

On 28th December 2016 he was taken to hospital where a CT scan hinted at the worse case scenario. It wasn't until an appointment with the specialists in Leeds on January 4th 2017 that it was confirmed as a Glioblastoma.

From here Dad gradually deteriorated, becoming more confused before starting to struggle with co-ordination. In March he was moved to a hospital bed in the dining room at home as negotiating stairs had become increasingly difficult. With the support of Saint Michaels Hospice, the district nursing team, Deep Care Solutions and Marie Curie he was able to remain at home right until the end.

During this time at home he had many visitors in the form of colleagues, friends & family and was even able to celebrate his 60th birthday at the beginning of June surrounded by the people he loved.

Unfortunately it was shortly after this that his devastatingly short battle came to its end. On the morning of 27th June Dad passed away in the early hours of the morning, very peacefully and pain free.

During his illness dad never gave up, he never complained and he kept his sense of humour the entire time. His funeral and memorial service on 14th July was incredibly well attended and it really was a celebration of his life. It was around this time that myself and Matt decided that we wanted to do something in his memory and to try do something to make a difference (even if it's just a tiny little difference) to all those who receive a similar diagnosis in the future.

The aim is to embark on various events with the aim to raise awareness and money for The Brain Tumour Charity. Dad was a keen swimmer & cyclist who competed in many triathlons over the years so we thought this was a fitting place to start.

One of Matt's regrets is that he never got the chance to compete alongside Dad which is something I was fortunate to do once for the Ilkley Triathlon in 1999. So we have decided that we are going to attempt at least one Triathlon (hopefully more) together.

This page will be somewhere that you can support us and we will keep you updated on our adventures. If you wish to do something in Dad's memory please link to Team 1142.

The page is also somewhere you can share your memories of Dad too. At his memorial service it was great speaking to people about our dad and how he had impacted different people's lives in different ways. We apologise if we were unable to speak to you personally but as you know there were a lot of people to get round. We would love it if you shared you memories with us (we know if means donating and for that we would be very grateful)

We chose the Brian Tumour Charity for many reasons, not just because they are determined to increase survival and reduce the effect brain tumours have on quality of life but because they are actively researching into Glioblastomas.

Glioblastoma is the most common high grade (cancerous) primary brain tumour in adults and graded as a 4, due to the fact it is fast growing and likely to spread. As with most brain tumours, the cause of Glioblastomas is unknown. The reason we chose to support the Brain Tumour Charity is that they are funding research into possible causes, focused around our genes. Mutations (changes) in our genes can cause this process to go wrong, resulting in cells growing uncontrollably and forming a tumour. These changes are often the result of a mistake being made when a cell copies its DNA before dividing. These changes are known as 'biomarkers'. Research funded by the Brain Tumour Charity, is gradually discovering which genes are involved in which tumours.

We know that as much as we would like to we cannot bring our Dad back but we would take comfort in knowing that we did a little something to improve the lives of people who receive a similar diagnosis and their families & loved ones in the future.

Thank you for reading our Dad's story and thank you for your support. 

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.