Cramlington mum with incurable brain tumour 'overwhelmed' after appeal raises thousands

A young mother with a brain tumour is "overwhelmed" after an appeal to help her make memories with her daughter raised thousands of pounds.

Reagan Kirkpatrick is facing a race against time to savour precious moments with her daughter following her devastating diagnosis last July.

The 22-year-old was diagnosed with a Grade 4 diffuse midline glioma brain tumour, which she has been told is incurable.

The mum from Annitsford, North Tyneside, has no way of knowing how long she has left with her two-year-old daughter, Amara Bell, but hopes to be able to take her to Disneyland Paris in 2023.

Ms Kirkpatrick's colleagues at Domestic and General, where she worked as a customer sales advisor, launched a Go Fund Me page called ‘Raise 4 Reagan' to help pay for her final wishes, which has already raised thousands.

In a heartfelt message of thanks on the page, Ms Kirkpatrick said: "I am absolutely overwhelmed by the support and generosity of each and every person who has donated and shared in support of my Go Fund Me.

"From myself and my family, we are truly grateful for all of your help and support to make our final dreams come true. This means more to us than you will ever know.

"To see friends, family, colleagues, and strangers come together and support us in our time of need makes my heart so full. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts."

In the run-up to Ms Kirkpatrick's diagnosis, she spent weeks suffering from severe headaches with the pain becoming so bad she was unable to work.

After blood tests failed to reveal the cause of the problem, she decided to book an appointment with Specsavers where an optician raised concerns that something wasn't right.

Ms Kirkpatrick underwent an MRI scan at Cramlington Hospital and the tumour was discovered. Just days later, she underwent an operation Newcastle's Royal Victoria Infirmary to relieve some of the pressure that was causing the headaches.

She has since undergone six weeks of radiotherapy at the Freeman Hospital and is now on her fourth round of chemotherapy.

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