Laura Nuttall, fearless cancer campaigner supported by Peter Kay, has died age 23, after a five-year battle with a brain tumour
- Laura Nuttall, from Lancashire, was diagnosed with a stage 4 glioblastoma
- READ MORE: Five warning signs of a brain tumour – including blurry vision and forgetfulness
Laura Nuttall, the fearless brain cancer campaigner who graduated from university after her terminal diagnosis and raised tens of thousands of pounds for pioneering treatment, has died, her mother has said.
The 23-year-old graduate, who thought her symptoms were ‘freshers’ flu’ when she first became ill five years ago, passed away at home in Lancashire where she was receiving palliative care.
Laura was diagnosed with a stage 4 glioblastoma in 2018 when she was in her first year of study for an international relations degree at University College London. Despite being given just 12 months to live, the brave campaigner underwent operations, chemotherapy and radiotherapy and eventually went back to university in Manchester, where she graduated with a 2:1 in politics, philosophy and economics (PPE) last summer.
Throughout her journey, Laura and her family including Nicola, her father Mark, and her sister Gracie have shared updates about her condition online, through social media and the Doing it For Laura campaign. While fundraising for her treatment, they enlisted the help of Peter Kay who was semi-retired at the time.
Today her mother Nicola, who posts on Twitter under the handle @s**tscaredmum, confirmed Laura passed away in the early hours of this morning as she paid tribute to her ‘fierce & tenacious’ daughter.
Laura Nuttall (pictured), a cancer campaigner who was supported by Peter Kay, has passed away at the age of 23, her mother Nicola has confirmed on Twitter
She wrote: ‘I’m heartbroken to share the news that we lost our beautiful Laura in the early hours of this morning.
‘She was fierce & tenacious to the end & it was truly the honour of my life to be her mum.
Brain tumours: The statistics and symptoms
- Brain tumours are the biggest cancer killer of children and adults under 40 in the UK
- Over 12,000 people are diagnosed with a brain tumour in the UK each year, with almost 5,000 people still losing their lives to the disease per year
- There are over 120 different types of brain tumour, as classified by the World Health Organisation
- Just 12 per cent of adults survive for five years after a brain tumour diagnosis, with the disease continuing to reduce life expectancy by 27 years on average — the highest of any cancer.
Common signs of brain tumours in adults
- Perisistent/recurring headaches
- Fatigue
- Seizures or fits
- Nausea/vomiting
- Memory issues
- Problems with vision
- Cognitive changes, such as difficulty concentrating, learning, decision making, planning and problem solving.
- Speech difficulties
- Loss of taste and smell
Source: The Brain Tumour Charity
‘We are devastated at the thought of life without our girl, she was a force of nature.’
Last week, Nicola shared a photo on Twitter of herself holding Laura’s hand and gave an update on her daughter’s condition.
It read: ‘The curtain’s half closed but the window’s open & we feel the breeze & hear the birds. Laura breathes in & breathes out.
‘When the gap gets long I hold my breath but she’s as tenacious in death as she was in life, despite a week without food or water. We hold hands & she squeezes.’
In other recent updates Nicola explained that Laura has not been able to consume much more than ice chips due to her declining health, but has said her daughter’s pain was being managed well.
After she was diagnosed five years ago, Laura and her family launched a campaign to raise money for her treatment and teamed up with charities including Our Brain Bank and The Brain Tumour Trust to raise awareness of glioblastoma.
In 2021, semi-retired Peter Kay joined the Nuttall family’s efforts, hosting a Q&A session on glioblastoma in honour of Laura.
While studying for her degree, Laura was juggling her university work with pioneering cancer treatment in Germany, which came with its own challenges.
On July 6 last year, the day of Laura’s graduation, Nicola posted an update on her GoFundMe page praising her daughter’s remarkable achievement.
She wrote: ‘In the last 3 years [Laura has] had:
- 19 weeks of immunotherapy treatment in Germany
- 11 cycles of chemo
- 6 rounds of keytruda checkpoint inhibitor
- 4 units of blood
- 2 further brain surgeries
‘Today she got a 2:1 in Politics, Philosophy and Economics.
‘It’s been so tough, working through sickness and fatigue and in little Airbnbs in Cologne with dodgy WiFi, but she did it and we could not be any prouder of her.
‘Thank you so much for all your help and support in funding her treatment, I honestly don’t think she’d be here without it.’
Speaking at her graduation, Laura said: ‘If someone tells me I can’t do something, it makes me even more determined to do it and prove them wrong – my family knows that all too well.
‘So when a doctor told me that I wouldn’t be able to go back to university, I thought, “we’ll see about that” and it made me want to do my degree even more. Now here we are.’
Since Laura’s diagnosis in 2018 she lived out several ‘bucket list’ experiences, including sitting in the driving seat of a train. She also met several influential people including the Obamas and Gillian Anderson.
Last week Laura’s mother Nicola posted on Twitter to say her daughter Laura was in declining health
Laura (pictured last July with her father Mark, sister Gracie and mother Nicola) graduated from Manchester University with a 2:1 in PPE
Laura had chemotherapy, immunotherapy and radiotherapy and several operations since she was diagnosed in October 2018 (pictured after one of her operations)
She also wrote a moving letter to pupils at Barrowford Primary School, sharing with them the lessons she has learnt in life.
In March, the BBC reported that Laura was undergoing a course of electro hyperthermia after having another operation and was feeling ‘hopeful’ for the future.
‘We had to decide on a next step and my doctor suggested maybe I go to Germany and see if I could have the treatment here,’ she said.
Laura managed to tick off several ‘bucket list’ requests since receiving her diagnosis in October 2018
Laura (pictured with her father Mark) said she could not have achieved any of the incredible things she has done without the support of her family
In the last few weeks of Laura’s live, Nicola said the family were spending as much time together as possible in the spring sunshine.
She also said she was ‘pretty sure’ that Laura enjoyed watching the Eurovision Song Contest a few weeks ago.
Last week, Nicola shared how the family were making a cast of Laura holding onto her sister Gracie’s hand.
Posting a photo of the first look at the final thing, she said: ‘This is just the first plaster version but I already love it.’
To learn more about Laura’s campaign to raise awareness of glioblastoma, visit her website, Doing It For Laura
Laura’s letter of life lessons to school pupils
After being diagnosed with a glioblastoma, Laura spoke to pupils in Year 6 at Barrowford Primary School in Lancashire on a school visit where she shared her story. After the visit, she wrote them a letter sharing her top life lessons:
Dear Student,
I feel very honoured to be writing this letter to you and having met a few of you when I was part of the ‘Human Library’, I have no doubt you will have gathered many of the skills you need for life by attending the brilliant Barrowford Primary School but I wanted to tell you a little bit about me, what I’ve been through, and lessons I’ve learned along the way.
Ever since I was young, I had a plan. A sort of vision about how my life would go, as I imagine most of you do too. I got irritated when things didn’t follow my plan and used every force necessary to put it back on track again. My dad constantly liked to tell me ‘You can’t predict life, you never know what you’re going to get’ and as much as I hate to admit it, he was right.
Whilst I was starting university, by a series of very fortunate events, I was diagnosed with brain cancer. I was lucky, because I was later told that if I wasn’t diagnosed as fast as I was, I wouldn’t be here to write this letter. This news turned mine and my family’s life upside down and we had to start adapting to life with cancer. Much like my dad had predicted, my plan was instantly changed forever.
Dealing with cancer and all its side effects has taught me a few lessons that I would like to share with you today:
Life lesson one: If you get knocked down, don’t stay down
Sometimes you might need a little time to recover from bumps in the road but get up as soon as you can. That’s what will make you strong. Resilience is important because we can’t always control what happens, but we can control how we deal with it.
Life lesson two: Don’t let others limit you or tell you that you can’t do something.
If you work hard and put your mind to it, there’s almost nothing you can’t achieve. Challenge other people’s expectations and make it your mission to prove those doubters wrong.
Life lesson three: Learn to ask for help
Sometimes you will need to ask for help from those around you. This doesn’t make you any less capable. We all need help from time to time and it’s important to talk to the people who care about you. It’s not a sign of weakness!
Life lesson four: Seek out happiness
At the time, finding out I had maybe a year to live was the worst thing I could have imagined, but In the last three years, I have met incredible people, travelled to brilliant places, and lived more in a few years than many people do in a whole lifetime. My situation is not what I would have chosen, but I can honestly say I have made the very best of a bad situation.
Lesson five: Trust in kindness
Although watching the news makes you think the opposite, I have learned that people are really very kind.
My life most definitely hasn’t gone to plan but there are so many opportunities and experiences that I would have missed if it had.
I hope that your life does go to plan, but if it doesn’t, you might be pleasantly surprised at what’s just around the corner for you.
And so, as you all make this next step in your lives, I hope you take all the opportunities life gives you and say ‘yes’ to things, even if you’re a tiny bit scared.
Be kind, be brave, be silly, be honest, be happy, be you.
Love from Laura
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