The teen was initially told her seizure was due to dehydration
A South London teenager who was told her seizure resulted from dehydration later discovered she had a rare low-grade “pebble-sized” brain tumour. Shannon Graham, 19, received a diagnosis of dysembryoplastic neuroepithelial tumour (DNET) in January 2024.
Just one month earlier, Shannon experienced a seizure and was reassured “not to worry” by a nurse, who connected it to dehydration. However, several weeks afterwards, Shannon had a second seizure during which she bit her tongue – leading to another hospital visit and an MRI scan.
The scan uncovered a small tumour on her frontal lobe, which Shannon admits sent her down a “bad rabbit hole.” She ultimately underwent surgery to remove the tumour in September 2025, returning to university just weeks later – now free from seizures.
Shannon, a forensic science student at London South Bank University from Dulwich, South London, said: “When I woke up, my whole family was around me and dad told me I’d had a seizure. I’ve never had any seizures, so I was 100 per cent scared and I had no idea what was going on.”
She added: “A nurse told me I might have been dehydrated and not to worry. I went home and everything was fine; I didn’t have any headaches or anything. Then a few weeks later, I had another seizure as I was drifting off to sleep, but this one was worse because I bit my tongue. I went back to hospital and had an MRI scan.”
Shannon continued: “This time they told me that there was a problem – an MRI scan showed I had a small tumour on my frontal lobe on the surface of my brain, just hovering there like a little pebble on the sand. I didn’t know what a brain tumour was – this was when my depression started and I spiralled down into a really bad rabbit hole.”
Following her diagnosis, Shannon was prescribed anti-seizure medication and underwent monthly MRI scans in the lead-up to her operation on 8 September 2025.
She explained: “The doctors didn’t know what was going on, and they found it quite bizarre that no one in my family has epilepsy because my seizures were so intense and violent where I sometimes punched my parents. I just had appointment after appointment and therapy sessions because I was so depressed.”
Shannon added: “I had eight months of being looked at and analysed – I hated it because I’m not a fan of hospitals. Fortunately, the operation went smoothly, and they manged to remove the whole tumour. The minute I saw my mum, I gave her a massive hug because I had been so worried that something would go wrong in theatre.”
Just three weeks post-surgery, Shannon was back at university and is now approaching the end of her first year. Now, Shannon undergoes annual MRI check-ups which have remained consistently stable, and she is no longer affected by seizures.
She is now taking part in the 200k in May Your Way challenge for Brain Tumour Research, where participants cover the distance however they choose – whether that be walking, running, cycling or swimming – while raising crucial funds for research into the illness.
She said: “This cause is so close to my heart and it’s vital that research into brain tumours is properly funded. They are not given as much government funding as other cancers, so I want to do my bit to help. Brain tumours kill more children and adults under the age of 40 than any other cancer, so I want to do my bit by taking on this challenge.”
Charlie Allsebrook, community fundraising manager at Brain Tumour Research, said: “Shannon’s story is truly inspiring and it’s great to see how well she is doing. We are incredibly grateful to her for taking on this challenge to help shine a light on the devastating impact of brain tumours and the urgent need for increased research funding.”
You can support Shannon’s fundraising campaign on Just Giving here.
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