Charlotte Varcoe
IT was a moment Scott Collins would never forget – being told he had a brain tumour roughly the size of a grapefruit in his frontal lobe before being rushed to Adelaide for treatment.
In 2017, the Mount Gambier chef finally received answers after hassling local general practitioners for an MRI scan following a string of dizzy spells, headaches and unusual mood swings.
Mr Collins said he would experience dizzy spells so intense that he would black out and, when he came to, he was in a different spot in the room with no recollection of how he got there.
Speaking with The Border Watch on his experience leading up to the Biggest Morning Tea cancer fundraising event this year, Mr Collins said the headaches were so painful that it would cause him to be physically sick in the middle of the night.
“I went through a number of general practitioners and I really pushed for an MRI scan at one point,” Mr Collins said.
“When I had my scan, that was when staff found the tumour and initially they were shocked at how I was walking and talking, let alone driving.”
Transferred straight to Adelaide within the space of an hour, Mr Collins said he had no understanding of what was happening due to continuously passing out and fainting throughout the trip.
“I went in for an operation and the surgeons were able to take most of the tumour out but because of where it was located, they couldn’t remove all of it so we just dealt with it,” he said.
“After the surgery I was fine for a few months, until the symptoms started coming back and I thought the tumour had regrown.”
Mr Collins said it was not until he had been checked that he was officially diagnosed with Stage 3 cancer.
“I was really lucky that the doctors got onto it when they did,” he said.
“During my 10 weeks of treatment I would stay one week at Greenhill Lodge and one week at a family member’s house in Adelaide which I was really lucky to be able to do because on my rest weeks I was able to actually relax rather than worry about travelling back and forth to Adelaide.
“It was hard being in Adelaide for so long and being away from my family and friends but my dad would spend one week with me at Greenhill and my mum would spend a week with me at our family’s home which I was really grateful for.”
Throughout his treatment process, Mr Collins said he remained as positive as possible by treating himself to delicious food afterwards.
“After each and every treatment I would seek out a decent lunch or treat myself to something just for getting through another session which I think really helped me,” he said.
“There were times where I had become violently ill as a result of the treatment and it almost got to the point where we were about to turn the car around and go back to the hospital because I was so ill.”
Mr Collins said despite the difficulties, he made a conscious effort to remain as positive as possible through the rough times.
Despite being officially in remission for two years, he said he continued to experience after-effects of the illness.
“I now suffer from neuro-fatigue which I do feel a lot and I just need to deal with it day by day,” Mr Collins said.
“It makes work difficult because I need a certain amount of time in between shifts to be able to rest properly and I just generally struggle because my body just doesn’t understand what happened.”
Despite this, he said there was light at the end of the tunnel with him now married with two children.
“I really couldn’t ask for much more to be honest which is why I now try and give back to those who helped me as much as possible,” he said.
“I have joined the committee for the Biggest Morning Tea and spent a number of years doing small fundraising events for the Cancer Council because every cent for the council helps support people like me who need the support.”
Mr Collins said those who were waiting on a diagnosis or going through treatment should continue to keep their heads held high and keep a positive mindset and mentality.
