A mum who began to smell burning and other "weird smells" was later given a devastating cancer diagnosis.
Years after the strange symptoms started appearing doctors discovered a fast-growing brain tumour and was told she had just 12 months to live.
Karen Rigby, from St Helens, was finally diagnosed with glioblastoma stage four in November 2020.
But the 60-year-old's journey began back in 2015 when she started experiencing symptoms, reports LiverpoolEcho.
Daughter Lorraine Lea, 33, said her mum began experiencing strange smells such as "burning" that no one else in the room would be able to smell them.
The family said they "weren't too concerned" at first as Karen had suffered migraines in the past and they put it down to this.
Another strange symptom the 60-year-old began suffering with was a feeling of deja vu, where Karen thought she knew everybody.
Daughter Lorraine said: "It did go on for quite a while, probably about a year, having strange symptoms.
"I think the weirdest one was she would get this feeling of deja vu and would sort of think she knew everybody.
"But it was hard to realise it was a symptom because my mum does know a lot of people because she is such a friendly and outgoing person.
"She knows everybody and she's worked in different places where she has met a lot of people.
"So when she would say things to us like 'oh god I know that person but I can't think why I know them' we'd be looking at the person thinking 'I have no idea who that person is' but that did used to be quite a common thing with my mum because she knew loads of people.
"Some of the symptoms, they did get used to passed off as random things and we didn't think anything of it at the time."
Karen said when she visited her doctors they dismissed it as the menopause.
These experiences became more frequent and the nan-of-seven would have episodes of "being vacant", where she would look right through people.
Lorraine said this was when she started to get concerned about what her mum was experiencing.
Karen then went on to have a grand mal seizure where which caused her to bite her tongue in half and have continuous fits.
After tests and scans doctors found the mum-of-two had a brain tumour which was non-cancerous.
Surgeons removed the tumour and Karen carried on with her life as normal.
For the next three years, she had regular scans but in November 2020 she was given heartbreaking news.
Karen was diagnosed with glioblastoma stage four.
These brain tumours are aggressive and cancerous and Karen said her oncologist gave her the news she would have 12 months to live.
However, Karen has already beaten the odds and it has been 19 months since her glioblastoma diagnosis.
Lorraine said: "Her positivity throughout has been absolutely amazing and she has never complained or played a victim or anything like that."
Karen's sister was also diagnosed with stage three breast cancer and "this has been additional trauma" for Karen.
Lorraine said the sisters "are both fighting cancer together."
The 60-year-old went through the standard treatment for NHS including chemotherapy and radiotherapy.
But unfortunately, the treatment hasn't kept the tumour from growing.
The family are now fundraising for alternative treatments to give Karen the "best chance" of fighting the brain cancer.
Lorraine said: "Unfortunately with this type of brain cancer it can just change rapidly.
"She is doing really well now but we just don't know how long for.
"So we're trying to get ahead of it and get the treatment done while she is well to see if we can slow it down or remove it completely, if we're that lucky."
Lorraine and her brother Alex, have now set up a GoFundMe page in the hopes of raising the funds for alternative treatment for their mum.
The sister and brother, who own their own businesses, The Physio Lounge and A.R Ceramics, are also setting up a raffle and got donations from local businesses in Warrington and St Helens.
However, if the family are to reach the level needed to pay for treatment they will need more donations and are asking if people will be kind enough to donate raffle prizes, more information can be found here.
