Wherever Steven may roam...

[UPDATE] With the incredible response we had over the weekend, we wondered if we might find some more people who would want to contribute and help push the fund to £15,000. This would create the possibility of upgrading the travel insurance to include areas beyond Europe (where many of my friends have annoyingly chosen to live...) and donating to a charity called Funding Neuro that is seeking more effective treatments for neurological conditions, including glioblastoma. One of the hardest parts of my diagnosis was the absence of hope, so if there’s a chance that I could contribute to someone in the future having some in this situation, that would be a hell of a way to go out.

For those who don’t know me – thanks for even reading this, by the way – my name is Steven, a man in his 40s, married to a woman in her 30s, and I live in Scotland where I’ve tried to be outside as much as possible... when not obsessed with watching films.

In August of last year that life was drastically altered and shortened when a lesion was found in my brain. A week later, I was having brain surgery, the results of which showed that I have glioblastoma multiforme, a WHO grade 4 brain tumour. Unfortunately, glioblastoma is currently incurable. The tumour is so grown into the brain tissue that a 100% removal is not possible (and wouldn’t kill the cancer anyway), while the location makes traditional cancer treatments less effective. In fact, due to the simultaneous chemotherapy and radiotherapy that I had from October to December having no impact on the tumour, I was recently admitted for a second brain surgery from which I’m currently recovering.

The debulking took around 80% this time, which should give me more time of a decent quality to spend with my family and friends, but the truth is that my life expectancy doesn’t extend beyond 2025.

In many ways, the daily truths I face, from the visual and physical impairments I now suffer to the shortened time I have with loved ones, are overwhelming, so I’m simply aiming to enjoy as much of what I love as possible.

My first goal is to travel to Finland to see Metallica over two nights in June in Helsinki with my amazing friend, John. Metallica have been a huge part of my life and my friendship with John, and it would mean the world to me to be able to see them one last time, especially with the person who most understands what that means to me.

Beyond that, my wife Emma and I would love to travel to France and more of Europe again... mostly to eat pastries... to at least share some of the experiences we had hoped for over the coming years. Walking by her side in France is one of the simplest and greatest pleasures.

This is where things get financially challenging. Due to my needs and risks, travel insurance with the requisite medical cover is £3500 (just for Europe). This puts a sizeable dent in our ability to travel as we both struggle to work in our situation, so I have, for the first time, wondered if I could ask those with some money to spare to contribute to my #MakeItToMetallica and #WalkWithEmma goals.

I know the amount is massive, but really anything that helps us travel even once will fill our hearts and make my remaining time so special.

With all my love,

Steven