Local Grandfather aka ‘The Ghostbuster’ set to raise the roof on ambitious fundraising challenge for brain cancer charity
Michael Shurmer, a much-loved husband, father of three and grandfather of six from Swindon who is receiving advanced treatment for an aggressive form of brain cancer at GenesisCare Oxford is set to complete his final of 12 fundraising challenges by scaling the roof of the O2 and raising over £12,000 for charity in the process.
Retired project manager Michael who was diagnosed with Glioblastoma in August 2023, is affectionately called The Ghostbuster by his family due to the battery charged backpack he has to wear at all times. The backpack delivers alternating low-intensity electrical fields that pulse painlessly through his scalp as part of his ongoing cancer treatment.
Michael says: “Following my brain surgery, my clinical team talked me through my prognosis and onward treatment plan, which included chemotherapy and radiotherapy. I was also offered an innovative new treatment – called Optune - that could improve my prognosis without compromising my quality of life. Anything that can extend the time you have left was appealing to me, so I decided to go for it.”
“Since starting my Optune treatment in April 2024, my family and I set ourselves a charity fundraising challenge. This year I’ve completed a half marathon walk around London, a high ropes course in Gloucester, a 10k in Henley on Thames, trekking the Pen-Y-Fan Mountain, a bootcamp event, Ninja Warriors, a charity golf day and sailing to the Canary Islands and back - all while wearing my Optune device. December 27th will be my final fundraiser event of the year as I scale the roof of the O2. I’m hoping to raise the roof and exceed my £12,000 fundraising target which will mean the world to me – as all the money raised will go Brainstorm, which funds research into surgical treatment, to improve life expectancy with the disease.”
“I feel so fortunate to have had my treatment at GenesisCare in Oxford, who are the first UK private cancer care provider to offer Optune as the standard of care for newly diagnosed WHO Grade 4 Glioma patients. Everyone who has been part of my treatment plan, from the nurses to the surgeons have been absolutely brilliant. I could not have wished for better care.”
“I wear the Optune device all the time and I can do whatever I want with it on, aside from swimming. It doesn’t stop me from getting out and about and playing with my grandchildren. They call me a ‘ghostbuster’ as I have to carry a battery pack with me. It all looks quite futuristic and the kids think it’s my superpower. It’s certainly kept me powered up to complete all my fundraising challenges. What a year it’s been!
I feel incredibly lucky to be experiencing such an advanced treatment on a daily basis, whilst being able to carry on with my life.
Dr Anup Vinayan – Clinical Director for Neuro-oncology at GenesisCare says: “We’re incredibly proud that at GenesisCare, patients covered with major insurers such as Bupa and Aviva, will no longer have to self-advocate for Optune Gio®, as we now can offer it as our standard of care for eligible patients after completion of chemoradiation in one of our centres.”
Optune Gio® is a portable CE marked medical device. Optune Gio® delivers alternating electric fields, called Tumour Treating Fields (“TTFields”). TTFields are delivered at a unique frequency that allows it to selectively disrupt Grade 4 Glioma cell division¹²³. TTFields are delivered locally and non-invasively, directly at the tumour site via arrays that adhere to the skin.