'Fit and healthy' man, 26, who thought he 'had the flu' dies

Kieren, aged 26, starting feeling unwell on Bonfire Night in 2022, but his symptoms were not alarming.

His partner Abbie Henstock, 27, initially thought he had Covid-19, but the test came back negative.

They both believed he just "had the flu" - but when his appetite did not come back, they contacted the doctors.

Kieren was then sent to Liverpool for further treatment, but he died in Warrington hospice early in December.

Abbie told the Liverpool Echo: ”He wouldn't hurt a fly. He was so cheeky, he was always playing pranks on his family or friends, or winding people up.

“He was such a family man as well and had a good group of friends around him. He was so chilled. He was so funny and gentle - he had that dry sense of humour. He was such a good lad.”

Read More: Scientists explore whether diabetes drug can halt ‘ticking time-bomb’ condition

Kieren, a Liverpool fan from Warrington, kept fit and healthy.

“He just had headaches. I remember he was on Sudafed for like a week and it wasn't really clearing," Abbie, also from Cheshire town, said.

“He was into his triathlons and he was so fit and healthy. He loved going out on his bike. He'd do a 10 hour shift at work and then come home and do a swim session. The headaches were putting him off training.

“He was such a foodie as well. He wasn't eating, so that's when we took him to the doctors who then immediately said, you need to go to A&E.”

At first, doctors believed Kieren may have meningitis, but a CT scan quickly revealed a mass in his brain.

He was moved to Walton Centre in Liverpool, where he underwent four procedures, including a biopsy.

Kieren had a grade three astrocytoma - an aggressive cancerous growth.

He received radiotherapy and chemotherapy treatment, which began reducing the tumour. But his latest scan showed it was expanding again.

Abbie said: “It didn’t feel real. I remember his mum calling me, saying he's got a mass in his brain. Then we were just thrown into this world, but at this point we didn't know it was cancer.

“We were just thinking, oh, it's just something on his brain, whether it's a blood clot or something that's not that vicious. But then obviously it spiralled.”

By December 2022, doctors had told Kieran’s family that his tumour meant he only had 12 months to live.

The pair established the online fundraising page Kieran's Krew. Kieran, alongside his family and friends, collected more than £27,000 for various brain tumour charities, including the Brain Tumour Charity.

Abbie said: “We just want to continue his legacy and always keep his name alive. He'll never be forgotten, he'll always be with us, but we want to continue sharing his journey.

“We want to continue to help other people going through a brain tumour diagnosis. I speak to so many people who've lost a partner or a son or a wife or whoever, and relating to those people helps me so much.”

The Brain Tumour Charity warns headaches are one of the most common symptoms of a brain tumour. Up to 60% of people living with a brain tumour will develop headaches at some point.