My father sounded drunk when he called me from vacation in Portugal – three months later he was dead
A DAUGHTER has revealed her heartache after her father’s death just months after realizing something was wrong when he called her.
Keith Jackson, 54, was in Portugal building a retirement home for him and his partner when he video-called his family.
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They noted that he had trouble speaking, made things up, and sounded “drunk.”
Tragically, he died just three months later after being diagnosed with glioblastoma (GBM) — a type of brain tumor.
His daughter Lianne, 26, told MEN: “Our family lives across the country so we video called regularly and when we called it it was like dad was drunk.
“When he spoke it sounded like nonsense, and he would often start a new sentence without finishing the last one. He also made things up that we knew didn’t happen like he was overexcited.
“I had missed calls from my brother Luke, when we finally spoke he told me that Dad was in the hospital with a brain tumour. That was the first time I heard about Dad having to be hospitalized, let alone having a tumor.
“I had so many questions I didn’t know what to do with myself.”
While still in Portugal, Keith visited the hospital and received the devastating diagnosis.
He returned home to Greater Manchester where a scan revealed he had a lesion in his brain and he underwent radiation therapy.
Tragically, Keith made the agonizing decision to stop all treatment and passed away in February 2020.
Lianne said: “Dad encouraged me and Luke to live our lives to the fullest and didn’t want us to see him sick.
“He had a couple of radiation therapy sessions which made him very ill and he decided to stop all further treatment, eventually becoming bedridden and stopping eating.
“When I visited him in February, I sat next to him, talking and reading.
What is glioblastoma?
Glioblastoma is an aggressive and rapidly growing tumor with an astonishingly short life expectancy.
Most people diagnosed with glioblastoma have a life expectancy of between 12 and 15 months.
Those who choose not to have treatment are expected to live about three months.
In March 2022, The Wanted band member Tom Parker died at the age of 33 from glioblastoma.
Former Public Health Secretary and Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell died of glioblastoma in May 2018.
People can mistake their symptoms for various other issues like stress or even a hangover.
Symptoms can get worse very quickly, sometimes progressing to unconsciousness.
Brain Tumor Research says tumors increase pressure in the skull and cause headaches.
Other symptoms to look out for are:
- loss of appetite
- nausea and vomiting
- loss of balance
- mood swings
- problems speaking
- Problems with memory or concentration
- seizures
- visual disturbance
“As I got up to leave I leaned in to kiss him on the cheek and felt him take my hand and when he said ‘I love you’ I knew this was the last thing time I would see my father.”
Lianne now plans to run three marathons in three days to raise money for brain cancer research to help find a cure.
The marine science project manager is supported by her brother, partner and uncle.
Mel Tiley, Community Development Manager at Brain Tumor Research, said: “Stories like Keith’s are devastating and highlight the lack of treatment options for patients diagnosed with brain cancer.
“We are grateful to Lianne for sharing her father’s story with us and wish her well as she takes on an incredibly difficult challenge to raise awareness of this terrible disease.”
To donate, visit Lianne’s fundraising page.
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https://www.the-sun.com/health/5943531/dad-died-phonecall-drunk-tumour/ My father sounded drunk when he called me from vacation in Portugal – three months later he was dead