Northampton mum-of-two to take on walking challenge in memory of her brother who died of a brain tumour

A Northampton mum-of-two is set to take part in a charity challenge for the second year running in memory of her brother who was ‘so proud’ the first time she did it.

Sarah Hepworth will be taking part in the Brain Tumour Research charity’s 10,000 Steps a Day in February Challenge in memory of her brother, Gavin Mabbutt, who died of a brain tumour in June 2021.

Gavin died 12 months after being diagnosed with a grade 4 glioblastoma multiforme (GBM).

He experienced no symptoms before he dropped a bike at work and struggled to keep his balance whilst riding in May 2020.

The following day he got dizzy and fell over prompting him to call his wife who returned home to find him lying on the floor having a seizure. She thought he had suffered a stroke and was shocked when scans revealed he had a brain tumour.

Sarah, a mortgage advisor for Nationwide, said: “When his wife, Polly, told me he had a brain tumour, all of a sudden a stroke sounded a lot more appealing.

“It just guts you; it’s awful and, of course, with Covid-19, the hospital told him whilst he was sat there on his own.”

Gavin, a father to Matthew and Jasmine and step-dad to Oscar and Maisie, had radiotherapy to try and shrink his tumour before undergoing a craniotomy and biopsy in August 2020.

He went on to have chemotherapy but continued to decline, becoming bedbound and losing the ability to speak before dying in June 2021.

Sarah said: “It’s just so cruel but I was so proud of him – he was so brave.

“My mum and I moved in to look after him whilst his wife had an operation and when she came home, he went downhill fast. It was as if he had been waiting for her to come home.”

The 39-year-old will be using her Fitbit to keep track of her steps and plans to do a lot of walking with her seven-month-old golden retriever puppy, Ollie.

She added: “I did the challenge last year whilst Gavin was still with us and raised more than £1,000. I did it for him and he was so proud of me that I wanted to do it again this year.

“I think it’s going to be one of those things I do every year now; whilst I can I feel I should.

“I have come to the conclusion, after seeing Gavin deteriorate like he did and witnessing what a horrible thing it is to die from, that brain tumours are so cruel that no one wants to talk about them.

“Once you start talking about something invading a person’s brain and taking them away piece by piece, I liken it to dementia in that respect but it’s so much more aggressive and so much quicker, then you begin to understand.”

After a successful first challenge a year ago which raised nearly £1 million to support vital research and campaigning, Brain Tumour Research’s 10,000 Steps a Day in February Challenge is back.

The charity is calling for people to step up to the Facebook challenge and make it even bigger and better in 2022.

Participants will receive a free emoji t-shirt and fundraising pack when they receive their first donation and a special medal if they raise £274 or more.

To support Sarah’s fundraising, visit her Facebook fundraising page or to join the challenge group visit this Facebook page.