A trainee teacher who claims her intense headaches and vision loss were blamed by her GP on the contraceptive pill was diagnosed with a brain tumour after a routine eye test.
Former Miss Cheshire Holly Worswick, 22, initially thought her migraines were the result of dehydration - but she visited her doctor after suffering sporadic vision loss.
Holly, who lives with mum Helen Bailey, 50, and step dad Nick Bailey, 57, in Macclesfield, was advised by her GP to simply change her pill.
But shortly afterwards a routine check-up at Specsavers revealed the optic nerve in her right eye was 'four times' its normal size.
Sent straight to A&E, Holly underwent CT and MRI scans which revealed she had a benign brain tumour which had caused pressure and fluid build-up behind her eyes.
The grapefruit-sized mass had been growing both underneath and over the top of her skull for a decade, and if left untreated it could have caused blindness and even death.
Holly underwent a gruelling eight-hour surgery where medics successfully extracted the meningioma tumour by cutting away the front right quarter of her skull, scooping out the mass, and then reattaching the bone.
Holly was left with a large dent in her head after surgeons were forced to operate again to remove the infected skull piece and insert a drain into her spine to remove fluid leaking from her nose and head.
A metal replacement was then fitted late last month, signalling an end to the frightening five-month 'rollercoaster' that left her fearing for her life.
The 22-year-old, who represented Cheshire as Miss Cheshire International at Miss International UK 2018, is now sharing her story to urge people to attend their routine eye appointments and get checked out if they feel something's not right.
Holly, originally from Warrington, said: "I was getting a lot of headaches and I always thought it was because I didn't drink enough [water], but then I started getting really bad blurred vision.
"I'd be driving and my sight would just go. I thought, 'this isn't normal', so I went to the doctors and they just thought it was to do with the pill I was on.
"I'm not a doctor so I don't know what they could have done, but they didn't even look into it, which is a bit ridiculous to be honest.
"Luckily I was due for a check-up at Specsavers a few days later, so when they took pictures of the back of my eye they found the optic nerves were four times the size they should be.
"The optician gave me a letter and said I need to go to A&E now and get a CT and MRI scan. They told me about the mass later that day."
"The surgeon said it's been growing for 10 years. 1-2mm per year, like a ticking time bomb. So it would have just kept on growing if the opticians didn't recognise it."
Holly later presented her optometrists with flowers to thank for them for saving her life.
She added: "That routine check up saved my life. Without them I wouldn't have found the tumour, so that shows it's important not to miss your eye appointment.
"If you keep getting headaches that are quite severe to the point where you can't do anything, you need to get that checked out. It's better to be safe than sorry."
Holly had laser eye surgery as a 21st birthday present and her appointment at the town's Specsavers on February 13 was a regular check-up.
She was rushed to Macclesfield General Hospital after her optical coherence tomography (OCT) scan worried opticians, and her CT and MRI scans revealed a deadly brain tumour later that day.
The Edge Hill University graduate was transferred to Salford Royal Hospital early the next morning and underwent successful surgery on February 16 before being allowed home after a week.
One month later, Holly, who had been mentally and physically recovering by watching tv and completing puzzles, felt fluid spilling from her nose and was readmitted to hospital.
Another CT scan on March 15 revealed a skull bone infection, so the next day surgeons removed the flap and then inserted a lumbar drain at the base of her spine to remove the excess fluid on March 18.
She was then sent home with intravenous antibiotics (IV) and protective headgear used to cover the exposed wound which caused a 'huge dent' in her head.
An allergic reaction to the antibiotics left her with a 'hives-like' rash on her legs and neck five weeks later, but a final operation saw surgeons insert a metal plate on July 20 to cover the gap in her skull.
Holly said: "It's been a rollercoaster five months, but I feel so lucky to be here now.
"When the opticians told me to go to A&E I was shocked but I wasn't really worried at that point, which sounds a bit mad. You just assume that everything's going to be fine."
It was only when doctors told Holly her mum could come into A&E, despite Covid restrictions, that Holly realised it was serious.
"I didn't sleep much at all. I was really stressed about it. It was a waiting game and that's what stressed me out even more," she added.
"My parents were really panicked. More so than me because they understood the severity of it. I'm glad the surgeon didn't go into more detail than he had to because I'd have been even more worried.
"The minute I got on the bed to go down for the first operation, that's the most scared I've been in my whole life. That's when it sank in and I really got upset.
"It dawned on me that I might not be alive or something might go wrong. I might have some permanent damage and I might not get the life back that I had. I could have gone blind."
Holly's final stitches were removed on August 5 and since then she's started driving again and returned to the gym to build her physical fitness back up.
Next month she hopes to restart playing football and finish her PGCE teaching qualification, which she had to postpone while going through surgery.
Specsavers clinical services director, Giles Edmonds, said: "Cases like Holly’s show how important it is for people to have regular eye examinations – and the importance of keeping on top of their appointments.
"Many people often think that a trip to the optometrist just detects changes in vision, but the reality is an eye examination can detect so much more than this, including signs of very serious health issues.
"This is why it is vital that everyone has their eyes checked, at least once every two years, regardless of whether or not they think they have a problem with their sight."
