- Katie Barnes was diagnosed with an acoustic neuroma, a benign tumour attached to the nerve which controls hearing and balance
- 46-year-old first noticed she was losing her hearing in April 2012
- Started to suffer constant ringing in her left ear and then noticed she heard robotic sounds similar to Daleks when people spoke to her
- Had special treatment blasting radiation at the tumour to shrink it
- While the tumour is benign, doctors constantly monitor its growth as it sits very close to her brain stem
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A hairdresser with a rare brain tumour claims she is plagued by robotic voices similar to Daleks.
Katie Barnes was terrified of the Doctor Who characters as a child, but now whenever someone speaks to the mother-of-three, she hears the tinny sounds.
The 46-year-old noticed something was wrong when she started to lose her hearing in April 2012.
She started to suffer constant ringing in her left ear, making it harder to hear her customers while she was cutting their hair.
Katie Barnes is plagued by robotic sounds similar to Daleks from the programme Doctor Who, after being diagnosed with a rare brain tumour
The mother-of-three was terrified of the Doctor Who characters as a child, but is now surrounded by noises resembling Daleks every day whenever someone speaks to her
Months later she claims she started to hear robotic sounds every time someone spoke to her.
Mrs Barnes, who was also suffering from pain all over her body, was first diagnosed with fibromyalgia – a long-term painful condition.
But when she began to lose her balance, she went back to her GP and was referred for an MRI scan.
It revealed the hairdresser had an extremely rare brain tumour, called an acoustic neuroma.
Doctors have managed to shrink the tumour and are hoping they can keep it under control, concerned about the risks if they had to operate.
But her balance and hearing will be affected for the rest of her life and she has been forced to quit her job.Â
Mrs Barnes, of Northfleet, Kent, said: ‘I had a constant ringing in my left ear and everyone sounded like Daleks.
‘I was terrified of the Daleks as a child and I used to have to run and hide under my bed. Now I have to hear them all the time.
‘It was bearable because I still had my good ear. But if I blocked the right ear, it genuinely sounded like I was in an episode of Dr Who – it made me think I was going deaf.
‘For a while when I put my phone on my ear I just thought it was a constant bad line and I even changed my phone.’
But when she began stumbling and suffering from poor balance, she knew something was wrong.
The 46-year-old has had gamma knife radiosurgery, where blasts of radiation are directed at the tumour to stop it growing while the head is held tightly in a clamp, pictured
‘It was like I was constantly on a boat,’ she said. ‘I was told it was an acoustic lesion, or an acoustic neuroma, and I laughed, I didn’t know what it was.
‘I Googled it and found out it was, thankfully, the least deadly tumour you can have.’
A neuroma is a growth of tissue which is not usually cancerous. But when it is an acoustic neuroma it can lead to other life-changing symptoms.
WHAT IS AN ACOUSTIC NEUROMA?
An acoustic neuroma is a benign non-cancerous tumour in the brain.
It growns on the acoustic nerve, which helps to control hearing and balance.
The acoustic nerve runs alongside the facial nerve, which carries information from the brain to face muscles.
A small acoustic neuroma can cause problems with:
- hearing – causing hearing loss or tinnitus – a perception of noise in the ear
- balance – causing vertigo, the sensation you are spinning
A larger tumour can cause multiple symptoms, including:
- headaches with blurred vision
- umbness or pain on one side of the face
- problems with limb co-ordination on one side of the body
- less often, muscle weakness on one side of the face
- in rare cases, changes to the voice or difficulty swallowing
Every year around 20 people in every million in the population are diagnosed with an acoustic neuroma.
They tend to be more common in women than men and those aged between 40 and 60 years old are most often affected.
After a ‘watch and wait’ programme, doctors noticed her balance had become significantly worse and her tumour was rapidly growing.
Mrs Barnes, who is mother to Rebekah, 20, Thomas, 19, and Jacob, 14, underwent gamma knife radiosurgery at The London Gamma Knife Centre in January 2014.
The procedure involves blasts of direct radiation to the tumour to stop it growing while the head is held tightly in a clamp.
Thankfully, Mrs Barnes was told at the end of last month the tumour is shrinking and she can get her life back on track as her symptoms lessen.
Unfortunately doctors told her that despite the tumour shrinking her balance and hearing will be affected for the rest of her life.
She is now struggling to look after Rebekah, who suffers from syringomyelia – a cyst in her spinal chord which leaves her bound to a wheelchair.
Mrs Barnes, who lives with husband Paul, 46, said: ‘It seems to have improved since I was told it was shrinking, a hearing aid has stopped the ringing and I’m able to stand and move around.
‘Unfortunately everyone still sounds like a Dalek but I will just have to get used to that.
‘The tumour is benign lbut it’s just on the edge of my brain stem so it’s going to be watched very closely.
‘If it does seem to suddenly start growing I will have to have surgery, and with it being so close to the brain it could leave me paralysed facially.
‘It shows brain tumours come in many different disguises and I had no idea that something like a hearing problem could be the sign of one.’
Mrs Barnes, who now relies on walking stick to get around, is starting a university degree in humanities in October despite her condition.
She is raising money for the British Acoustic Neuroma Association, by taking part in a number of fundraising pamper days, where her friends will provide massages, and manicures.
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Bwanza Mungwanza,
The Royal Borough of Chelsea, United Kingdom,
moments ago
There’s only one doctor in the world who can cure that condition permanently, and she should seek him out. His name is Dr. Who.
twiggybum,
Rochester Kent, United Kingdom,
5 minutes ago
I hope they keep an eye on this Lady, My Mum had a Benign Acoustic Neuroma, It killed her when I was 16, 5 years after a 13 hour Surgery, a round of Gamma Ray Treatment and many many more operations. It grew back and there was nothing they could do about it. It is a horrible tumour, and I hope with all my heart that they keep her well.
null,
10 minutes ago
What a brave lady get well soon xxx
Happy with my life,
Home, Thailand,
54 minutes ago
I am 20 months post op after surgery for an acoustic neuroma, and suffer with single sided deafness, balance issues and facial paralysis. I cannot go out alone anymore, and have lost my independence. It may be a benign tumour but it grows and causes a lot of issues for many people.
Potholeland,
WallyCross, United Kingdom,
55 minutes ago
What will Atos assesors make of that?
Cartus,
Cheltenham, United Kingdom,
1 hour ago
The symptoms are very similar to Ménière’s disease and anybody presenting with hearing loss to one ear only will routinely be scanned for an acoustic neuroma which is a fairly rare condition.
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