SDLP MLA Cara Hunter reveals 'life-changing' brain tumour diagnosis

Cara Hunter, one of the younger faces in the Northern Ireland Assembly, has revealed she's been diagnosed with a brain tumour.

The SDLP politician says the tumour is in her Pituitary gland, and while it's not malignant she told UTV that she faces a life-long battle to control symptoms like severe nausea, fatigue and brain fog.

The pituitary is a small gland at the base of the brain. It has a key role, releasing hormones into the bloodstream and controlling many of the body's functions.

Three years ago, 25 year-old Cara noticed that she wasn't feeling entirely well. "For a number of months, about five or six months, I had no menstrual cycles, so I missed periods.  

I went to my GP and she said, 'Do you know what, I'm going to run a Prolactin blood test.' The normal range in a test would be about 40 to 60, and mine was 1800.

So it was completely out of range, way off the scale." Her condition worsened and an emergency MRI scan brought the news that changed her world.

"Unfortunately I did get the news that I had a non-cancerous tumour, yeah.

"It was very shocking. One aspect of it was that I felt very validated because initially with all of these symptoms I thought it is just in my head? So it was very validating for me, it actually was in head, I actually had a Pituitary tumour.

"On the other hand it was quite daunting because I'd never heard of a Prolactinoma or Pituitary tumour. If you'd asked me where in the body the Pituitary was I certainly wouldn't have pointed at the head, so that shows the lack of knowledge I had."

She now takes medication that was developed for patients with Parkinson's Disease, but the drug causes her a lot of side effects.  

"For me unfortunately there are significant side effects, like really bad fatigue, and especially in the mornings a sensation that I need to throw up but I'm not sick.  

"So undoubtedly while the tumour is not malignant and it's non-cancerous, it has definitely been life-changing and life-altering for me."

She wants others - especially women - to be aware of the symptoms. "This impacts your life on a daily basis and perhaps there may be women out there experiencing the same thing and they may go undiagnosed.

I want them to hear my story and say: 'That could be me' and then go to their GP." Cara says she entered politics to make a difference, and she hopes that being open about her condition will encourage others to get their symptoms checked.