On Sunday TV property show presenter Jonnie Irwin revealed he has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. The father-of-three has kept his illness private for two years and doesn't know how long he has left to live.
The host of Channel 4's A Place In The Sun and the BBC's Escape To The Country said his lung cancer had spread to his brain, reports The Mirror. The 48-year-old said his first symptom came while he was filming A Place In The Sun in August 2020 in Italy, when his vision became blurry while driving. "Within a week of flying back from filming, I was being given six months to live," he said.
According to Cancer Research UK, blurred vision and other sight issues can sometimes indicate a tumour growing in the brain. The website reads: "The symptoms can develop gradually over some months or even years if the tumour is slow growing. Or quickly over days or weeks if the tumour is fast growing."
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Because the skull is made of bone, there is a fixed amount of space for the brain to take up, the charity said. This means, if there is a tumour growing, it increases the pressure inside the skull. This is called intracranial pressure.
Intracranial pressure can cause a number of side-effects aside from vision issues, including headaches, seizures, nausea or vomiting, drowsiness and changes in personality or behaviour.
Those who experience optical symptoms might find that their eyesight is getting worse and glasses don't help. Sometimes vision comes and goes. They might also lose the ability to see out of the corner of their eyes, making them bump into cars or objects on their left or right side. They may also have blurred vision, floating shapes or tunnel vision.
The location of the tumour can determine your likelihood of getting certain symptoms. For example, frontal lobe tumours make you more likely to have difficulty walking, loss of smell, weakness on one side of the body, personality changes as well as problems with your sight and speech.
The occipital lobe processes what you can see. A tumour located here is highly likely to cause changes in sight. It can make it difficult to identify the colour and size of objects as well.
Cancer Research UK advises you to see your doctor if you have any of these symptoms or other changes that are unusual for you - or that won’t go away. Your symptoms are unlikely to be anything serious, but it is important to get them checked by a doctor.
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