A Fife vet has credited a bike crash for saving his life, after doctors checked his brain for signs of damage and found a deadly tumour growing there.
Adam Tjolle was rushed to hospital with broken bones when he fell from his mountain bike last summer.
Medics scanned his head after the accident and were stunned to find a tumour the size of golf ball.
Father-of-two Adam, 48, underwent lifesaving surgery and will tell the story of what he regards as his lucky escape in a BBC Radio 4 programme next Tuesday.
He said: “It’s hard to believe a daft cycling accident revealed a tumour that could have been growing since I qualified from the Royal Veterinary College in 1994.”
Adam, chief executive of Dunfermline-based Inglis Vets, was initially given the devastating news that he might have just five to seven years to live.
One option was surgery to remove the low-grade invasive tumour, potentially tripling his life expectancy.
Adam decided to go ahead with an “awake craniotomy”, involving a five-hour operation at Edinburgh’s Western General.
During the procedure, the surgeon electrically stimulated parts of his brain so he could find out directly from him which parts he could remove without completely disabling his patient.
Adam’s mobility and cognition are improving every day and the BBC programme will document his progress in overcoming the effects of the surgery.
The support of well-wishers has been a huge part of his recovery and when he decided to wear a hat to cover his shaved head, friends, colleagues and clients donated pieces of colourful material to make into a special headpiece.
Adam said: “I’m so grateful to the medical team, and my amazing family and friends.
“Together with the brilliant Inglis Vets staff and clients, these people have kept me going through it all.
“Brain tumours are scary things, so I hope this BBC programme will raise awareness and help others understand the complex processes involved.
“My brain is still healing, but I can’t wait to get back to my team and to some normality.”
Recordings from the operation will feature in The Vet with Two Brains, which airs on Tuesday, March 27 at 11am.
The BBC Radio 4 programme, marking Brain Tumour Awareness Month, will be repeated on Easter Monday at 9pm and will be available on BBC iPlayer.
