When 31-year-old Sean Sweeney developed a stiff neck and tingling down his right side, he assumed he had simply pushed himself too hard at the gym. Like many active adults, the South Yorkshire resident booked a few physical therapy sessions and expected the pain to fade.
The pain lingered. After initial medical consultations failed to pinpoint the cause, doctors discharged him.
“That was worrying,” Sweeney told PEOPLE in a 2026 interview, noting that he felt increasingly frustrated and unsettled as the weeks went on. He struggled to concentrate and sensed something was deeply wrong.
His instincts were tragically correct. In the early hours of July 19, 2022, Sweeney suffered a massive seizure in his sleep. His partner of 12 years, Lucy, woke up and immediately called emergency services.
“Within 20 minutes, I was blue-lighted to Doncaster Royal Infirmary,” Sweeney recalled to the Daily Mail.
At the hospital, a CT scan revealed a large lesion on his brain.
“I felt completely numb,” he said. “I didn’t cry or panic, my mind went straight to Lucy and my family.”
Before undergoing any major medical interventions, Sweeney and Lucy decided to get married. Shortly after the wedding in November 2022, he went in for a grueling nine-hour awake craniotomy.
The procedure was incredibly high risk. While on the operating table, Sweeney suffered an acute stroke. Because he was awake for the surgery, he actually remembered the exact moment things changed and his speech became slurred.
Following the surgery, oncologists delivered a devastating blow. Sweeney was diagnosed with a grade 3 astrocytoma, an aggressive and incurable form of brain cancer. He was given a life expectancy of roughly ten years.
Breaking the news to his family was agonizing. He told the charity Brain Tumour Research that telling his mother was one of the hardest moments of his life. She was shocked and initially believed the surgery meant he was completely cured, and it took time for her to understand the terminal reality of the diagnosis.
Sweeney spent the next year fighting for his life. He completed five weeks of intensive radiotherapy followed by 12 grueling cycles of chemotherapy, finally finishing his treatment course in February 2024.
Despite the heavy toll of the cancer and the stroke, Sweeney has refused to let the diagnosis dictate his remaining years. He has since returned to work, resumed cycling, and dedicated his time to raising funds for Brain Tumour Research. After recently raising thousands of dollars through a charity cycling challenge, he plans to keep pedaling forward.
“Stay positive and try not to dwell on what’s out of your control,” he advised others facing similar battles. “It’s not easy, but I truly believe a positive mindset can help you keep moving forward.”
If you would like to make a donation to Sean, visit www.braintumourresearch.org/donate or leave a gift in your will via www.braintumourresearch.org/legacy.
