Father and son complete 469 mile pilgrimage after life-saving brain op

When Martin Moorman’s son Jake suffered a brain haemorrhage he promised the teenager that when he was better they would embark on a trip of a lifetime together.

But when Jake suffered a second bleed which needed a second operation the trip to walk the 490 mile historic Camino Way looked in doubt.

However this month the father and son team completed the emotional 28 day walk from the French Pyrenees to Santiago in North West Spain after Jake made a miraculous recovery.

“We were warned that the surgery was not without risk and there was a chance Jake might not make it,” said Martin, headmaster at Ravenscliffe High School And they have raised more than £12,000 for Brain Tumour Research in Yorkshire to say thank you to the team that saved Jake’s life.

It was back in February 2014 that Jake, then 15, started to complain of headaches and started vomiting.

“We put it down to the tummy bug and it seemed to go away,” recalls Martin, 52. But the headaches and vomiting returned. After repeated visits to the GP Jake was eventually referred to Huddersfield Royal Infirmary where a scan revealed he had a slow bleed at the back of his brain.

He was sent to Leeds General Infirmary. Doctors were hopeful that the blood would reabsorb to allow them see what was causing the problem. But Jake continued to deteriorate and lost a lot of weight. He was readmitted into LGI where the Moormans were given a stark choice.

“They said they would have to operate or he risked dying on the ward,” says Martin. “Jake had just turned 16 and so he had to sign his own consent form.”

The surgery took seven and half hours and although doctors thought they had stopped the bleed their still weren’t certain what had cause it.

After the surgery Jake was extremely ill and was unable to sit his final GCSEs and despite being a straight A* student he was not allowed to sit them at a later date.

“He was awarded five GCSEs because of the course work he had already completed. We were annoyed at first, but the most important thing was that Jake was starting to get better.”

Jake’s condition improved and life started to get back to normal.He was back on his skateboard and had started to study for his A levels when he suffered another bleed. Doctors said they thought he had a cavernoma, a cluster of malformed blood vessels in the brain that was pressing on the part of Jake’s brain that controlled vomiting. They warned the family they may have to operate again at some point but the bleed was slow.

“Jake was doing his Alevels and he said he wanted to get them out of the way and then have the operation. We supported his decision as he was doing great.”

But during a Christmas family to Scotland, Jake suddenly took a severe turn for the worse.

He was taken by ambulance to Dumfries and then Edinburgh and then back to the LGI where doctors said they needed to operate as soon as possible, although there was a risk he might not survive the surgery.

“The neurosurgeon said he was ‘complex and unique’ - but we knew that already,” said Martin. “We thought about it separately over the weekend and we all came to the same conclusion, that we had to take the chance on the operation working.” This time Jake was in surgery for ten hours. For two weeks after the op he was very poorly, but was eventually allowed home in a wheelchair.

“After a month he started to make very small steps of improvement.” The remarkable young man went back to school in his wheelchair, determined to sit his A levels and came away with an incredible two As and B.

“We believe he is a bit of a miracle,” says is proud dad. “We both said that we had to mark it in some way and try in some small way to pay back just what the amazing surgeons have done for Jake.”

The pair had watched the Martin Sheen film The Way, while Jake was recovering from his first op and it inspired them to plan their own pilgrimage.

And over an extended Easter holidays Jake and Martin, joined by Jake’s brother Harry, 20, and his cousin Daniel, 19 for part of the trip, completed the 490 mile walk.

“The Camino was certainly one of the greatest experiences of my life,” says Jake , 19, who is going to Geology and Geography at the University of Leeds

“Personally, I think that the combination of the physical, social, emotional and spiritual challenges that it presents make it extremely unique and it’ll forever be one of my most treasured memories.”

It has been a difficult few years for Jake but he says they have changed the way he looks on life.

“Honestly the last few years sucked, health-wise, but I still feel they’ve been some of the richest years of my life. Everyday I’m actually thankful for what I went through as I believe it now helps me view life through a new perspective- one that wants to make the most of every opportunity.

“Not only that, but now as I look back I can see so much good that has come from that situation: my family is stronger than ever, my faith is stronger than ever and we’ve even managed to raise a crazy amount of money to help others.”

Doctors now think that Jake’s problems were caused by a benign tumour that they managed to remove during the second op. How has to go for regular scans and has just been given his one year all clear.

They decided to raise £5,000 for brain tumour research in Yorkshire, but they have more than doubled that already it.

And Jake is already planning a return trip to the Camino Way.

www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Moormansdotheway