My husband Jason, and our girls daddy was diagnosed with a Glioblastoma Multiforme in January 2019.  Following brain surgery, 6 weeks radiotherapy and a further 6 months chemotherapy, we received the heartbreaking news in January 2020 that the tumour had continued to grow.  At the end of February 2020, my husband sadly started to decline. We lost Jason at home on the 26th October 2020, aged 44. 

GBM’s are extremely cruel. Their very nature is to grow like a spiderweb, slowly spreading over healthy brain tissue. Eventually they stop the brain being able to communicate to the rest of the body. It is the most heartbreaking illness. The average prognosis is 15-18 months after diagnosis, with a very small percentage exceeding 5 years. 

My husband Jason treasured his brain the most. Well read, passionate about the sciences - particularly Physics, tactically planning his pool manoeuvres and spending hours pouring over data, he was continually in thought.  Jason enjoyed explaining how the world worked to Sophie, singing hilarious songs, doodling equations for fun and just talking for hours.  He was the epitome of irony.  Reading quantum physics and enjoying computer programming on one hand and childishly joking about and being the most silly, cheeky, adoring person on the other. We miss Jason so much.  

Jason used his brain to the fullest. Every. Single. Day. 

It makes such a devastating  illness all the more unfair.

Since national cancer spend records began in 2002, £680 million has been invested in breast cancer, yet only £96 million in brain tumours – that’s a difference of £35 million a year over 17 years.  In other words just 1% of National spend on cancer research has been allocated to Brain Cancer.  

Yet more children and adults under the age of 40 die from this cancer more than any other. It is just not acceptable that there has been no significant treatment options for brain cancer for decades.

The cost of a days research into brain tumours is £2740 per day.  The Brain Tumour  Glioblastoma research is carried out at the Centre of Excellence based in Queen Mary University London.   (The wider research team there recently discovered a pinprick test to pick up aggressive prostate cancer in men avoiding invasive procedures and improving quicker diagnosis.)

It is important we continue to keep Jasons legacy alive by both highlighting the importance of petitioning the government to raise funding into brain cancer research and additionally fundraising to enable vital research to continue. 

The wear a hat day is the first fundraising event, the girls and I will take part in. It is an annual event organised by the Brain Tumour Research charity. 

Send us a photo of you wearing your hat. It can be as creative or formal as you fancy.  I still remember Jason wearing the mad hatters hat for our engagement shoot. He was so up for anything 💕 I’ll be wearing a couple of Jasons hats and two others I wore with him on holiday. The girls have an assortment of hats too. 

You can tweet your photo to @jenwillis888 or the Brain Tumour Research twitter @braintumourrsch on Facebook or just WhatsApp it. 

Give what you can however little, it all helps. 

Thank you all in advance.

If you fancy taking up a fundraising event for Brain Tumour Research in Jasons name, whether it’s a run, cake sale, pool event, physics-Athon or beat boxing challenge, that would be really appreciated too. I know some of Jasons friends are getting ready for a challenge in April and Sophie is also planning a challenge in June. Any further ideas from you are really welcomed. 

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.