Health-conscious dad who died of brain cancer inspires son to embark on charity run
A son has been inspired to take on a charity run after his healthy father, who went to the gym every day, was diagnosed with a deadly brain tumour.
Joginder Singh Dhillon from Birmingham was diagnosed with a grade 4 glioblastoma (GBM) in August 2020.
The average survival time for glioblastoma patients is devastatingly short – just 12-18 months. Sadly, Joginder died just eight months later.
Joginder's son, Jas Dhillon, aged 49, said his father was incredibly health-conscious and "never suffered from a cold or headache in his life".
Jas, who works for HSBC, is now preparing to take on a charity run on Sunday to fundraise for Brain Tumour Research in memory of his father.
The father-of-three from Birmingham said: “Dad was as active as he could be right up until the end of his life. Even when I took him to the hospital for his chemotherapy, he would ask me to park in the furthest space away from the entrance – he was determined to remain as independent and active for as long as possible.”
Addressing his father's illness, Jas added: "Watching Dad go through everything was frustrating. Doctors said an operation was high risk because of his age, and the chemotherapy treatment he did have seemed to do nothing to help him.
"We slowly saw the impact the growing cancer had on his body, he became slower and wasn’t himself.
"The care that Dad received was amazing but what has caused heartbreak for the whole family is just how indiscriminate this disease is, no matter the age or lifestyle of the person."
Jas said he is inspired by his dad’s “courageous battle” with the disease. He will be taking part in a 5K run on Sunday to help raise money to help with the charity’s vision of finding a cure for all types of brain tumours.
He said: “It’s taken me until now to do something in my dad’s memory and add value to the lives of those facing their own diagnosis. Dad would always encourage us to be the best version of ourselves and I know he’d be proud that as a family, we are taking steps to help others living with this awful disease.”
One in three people know someone affected by a brain tumour. They kill more men under 70 than prostate cancer, yet just one per cent of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to brain tumours since records began in 2002.
Mel Tiley, community development manager at Brain Tumour Research, said: “We’re sorry to hear about Joginder and are grateful to Jas for sharing his story. It’s the support of people like Jas, that will help us move closer towards finding a cure.
"The family’s experience is a stark reminder that just 12 per cent of those diagnosed with a brain tumour survive beyond five years compared with an average of 54 per cent across all cancers. This needs to change.”
Brain Tumour Research funds sustainable research at dedicated centres in the UK. It also campaigns for the Government and larger cancer charities to invest more in research into brain tumours in order to speed up new treatments for patients and, ultimately, to find a cure.
The charity is the driving force behind the call for a national annual spend of £35 million in order to improve survival rates and patient outcomes in line with other cancers such as breast cancer and leukaemia.
