I thought excessive thirst was due to diabetes — but I had a brain tumor

A patient believed he had his illness figured out — but his symptoms were a sign of something else entirely.

Jonathan Plummer, 41, was drinking about 10 liters of water for two years, and was constantly tired, leading doctors to believe that he had diabetes.

“I felt a constant thirst that I couldn’t quench and got to the point where I was passing as much water as I was drinking,” Plummer told South West News Service. “It was an awful time which caused me to miss days of work at a time and I experienced extreme fatigue.”

Diabetes is a condition that occurs when your blood sugar levels are too high, according to The Cleveland Clinic, and it can develop when your pancreas doesn’t produce enough insulin, or when your body “isn’t responding” to its effects properly.

There are different types of diabetes, including type one and type two, but some common symptoms include increased thirst, fatigue and frequent urination.

But after an appointment with his primary care doctor and a kidney specialist, the tests came back inconclusive.

It wasn’t until a routine eye exam revealed a mass, and he was given an MRI for a further look — and it turned out that Plummer had a brain tumor.

He was diagnosed with a germ cell tumor on his pituitary gland, which can affect water retention.

“I was devastated,” Plummer told the outlet. “The tumor was growing on my pituitary gland — which was causing my need to drink water all the time — and many other ‘spots’ on my brain.”

“An operation wasn’t an option so I was placed on steroids to help with the pressure of the tumor in my brain,” he said.

A germ cell tumor is an “abnormal growth” that forms from germ cells, per Weill Cornell Medicine’s Brain and Spine Center. They are quite rare, but symptoms can include excessive thirst, changes in vision and hormonal dysfunction.

However, the steroid treatment caused him to gain over 50 pounds as a side effect.

“I was always very active and played rugby and cricket weekly which is something I have never been able to return to,” Plummer, who works as a postman, said.

“I took up running and swimming as non-contact exercise and have regained control of my weight.”

In order to treat it, Plummer also underwent 30 rounds of intense radiotherapy and is now thankfully cancer-free.

He remains on life-long medication.

Now, he is hoping to raise awareness about brain tumors and is participating in a sponsored skydive to raise money for Brain Tumor Research, an organization that hopes to find a cure for brain tumors through research.

So far, Plummer has raised nearly $500 ahead of the event, named the Jump For Hope at Perranporth Airfield in Cornwall.

Mel Tiley, who is the community development manager at Brain Tumor Research, told SWS that they are “grateful” to Plummer for sharing his story.

“His story reminds us that brain tumors are indiscriminate; they can affect anyone at any age,” Tiley said. “We’re determined to change this but it’s only by working together that we will be able to improve treatment options for patients and, ultimately, find a cure.”