Scots woman whose memory was wiped after brain tumour surgery 'didn't recognise own parents'

dailyrecord.co.uk:

A woman told how all her childhood memories were wiped out after life-saving surgery to remove a brain tumour - and said she didn't even recognise her parents.Weronika Fafinska, 23, was diagnosed with a grade 2 diffuse astrocytoma brain tumour in February 2014 when she was just 14.In 2012, Weronika went deaf in her right ear and an MRI scan later revealed she had a brain tumour.She had most of the tumour removed during surgery in February 2014 - but when she came round she didn't even recognise her parents who were sitting at her bedside.Weronika, from Edinburgh, said: "In the car going home, I was sick three times because, in my mind, I had never been in a car before.

I was so scared because I didn't know where I was going."When we got to the house, I didn't recognise it. I didn't recognise my bedroom, and I didn't like anything in there, such as my clothes."I didn't know what anything was.

I didn't know that an oven got hot, or what a football was, but I was able to pick things up, such as my maths timetables, right away."When I returned to school, there were hundreds of people and I didn't know anyone, not even my closest friends."Weronika's tumour remained stable for seven years but in March 2021, a scan revealed it had grown, but not enough for it to be operated on.

Since then, scans in August 2021, March 2022, and August 2022 have all shown slight growth.Weronika said: "The uncertainty of how it's growing and if the treatment will work has really got to me this year."I'm having to think about things that normal 23-year-olds shouldn't, such as is there any point in getting married, can I have kids and, if so, what will happen if I don't win against my tumour?