Dad’s 'ear infection' turned out to be 'rare' skull tumour
Jake Watts thought his hearing was a little bit off. He never suspected that the cause would be so serious and take over months of his life
A camping trip meant to celebrate an anniversary ended with Jake Watts being rushed to the hospital, vomiting, in severe pain and unable to see. The now 29-year-old electrician from Stanford-le-Hope, Essex, later had a heart attack, which he says was caused by a sudden surge in blood pressure linked to the bleed.
The crisis unfolded while he was already facing the prospect of major treatment for a rare tumour on his skull, with his partner Chloe March pregnant at the time. The hidden condition had first been picked up months earlier during what should have been a routine Specsavers appointment.
Jake had initially noticed his hearing fading in his right ear in early 2023 and was given antibiotics for a suspected ear infection, but his symptoms did not improve. It was only when an optician spotted abnormal blood vessels and pressure behind Jake’s right eye that he was referred for an MRI scan, which led to a rare cancerous growth being spotted.
Jake said: "When the optician found the pressure behind my eye, they said it might just be high blood pressure, but it was best to get checked. When I was then being referred to cancer and tumour specialists, it was a bit of a panic to hear at just 26."
Specialists at Queen’s Hospital in Romford identified the issue as chondrosarcoma - a rare cancerous bone tumour - growing from his skull and into his brain. Doctors also believed its location explained why his hearing had got worse.
Before his treatment plan could properly begin, the emergency struck during the September 2024 trip with Chloe. Jake said: "On the last day of the trip, I woke with this weird pain in my head, which kept getting worse.
"I started being sick loads, in a lot of pain, and then I couldn't see." He spent five days in hospital receiving steroids to control the bleed.
He said that the wheels were already in motion for his main treatment when he got the "weird pain" which led to him having a heart attack in hospital. Jake said: "The nurses told me after that if I had been seen a second later, I would have gone into cardiac arrest."
In October 2024, he was sent for a biopsy, and surgery was scheduled. Jake later underwent a 16-hour operation in which surgeons removed around 70% of the tumour, but they could not take all of it because it had become entangled with nerves and extended onto the brain stem. A further procedure was required to remove additional tissue to enable radiotherapy.
While these surgeries were happening, the couple were also dealing with major events at home, including a house move and the arrival of their daughter, Orla Ann Watts.
Even after surgery, complications continued when Jake’s head wound failed to heal, and he began leaking brain fluid, forcing him back to the hospital for treatment to reduce pressure so the wound could close properly.
He said: "I thought I was bleeding when my head was wet. So I had to go back so they could drain enough fluid to keep the pressure low so the wound would heal."
Jake has since begun proton beam therapy, an advanced form of radiotherapy designed to target the remaining cancer. He has been travelling by train to University College London Hospital since starting the course in July, as he is unable to drive during treatment.
The family says the next steps will be determined after his next scans assess how well the radiotherapy has worked. Alongside the health battle, the couple are fundraising because Jake has run out of sick leave and cannot work, while Chloe is on maternity leave and they are trying to cover mortgage payments on a single income while caring for their 10-month-old daughter.
An online page was set up (click here) to "help ease some of the stress". Emily Smith, who set up the page, wrote: "No matter what life throws at them, they are always laughing and so positive. Even while fighting cancer, Jake continues to put everyone else before himself, a true reflection of the man he is."
