A HUGELY popular RAF engineer from Newport initially believed that his seizures were caused by stress and over-doing it at the gym, but were actually symptoms of a fatal brain tumour.
Anthony Hard, 36, died on November 27, 2015, after a lengthy battle with brain cancer, leaving behind his wife, Nahella, 42 and children Reagan, 18, and Casey, 11.
The father-of-two was first diagnosed with a low-grade glioma, which is a slow growing form of brain cancer, in 2011 after returning home from Afghanistan.
Anthony suffered his first major seizure while in Afghanistan and was taken to the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford after his second seizure on his return home.
A scan revealed a mass on his brain only eight days after the birth of his second child, Casey.
Over the next few years, Anthony underwent several treatments including two operations, radiotherapy and chemotherapy - but his tumour was too aggressive.
After an operation in April 2012, he was diagnosed with oligodendroglioma 10 months later and was given months to live.
His brother, Michael Hard, 41, is also an engineer in the RAF and has taken part in many fundraising events in memory of his older brother.
Michael said: "I always looked up to Ant, and I even followed him into RAF, and became an engineer just like him.
"My mum called me to tell me what had happened to Ant and that he had been diagnosed with a brain tumour.
"It was shocking, but my brother and I were very similar in that we both had a positive outlook and would look for a solution when faced with a problem."
After Anthony's terminal diagnosis, the family were understandably greatly distressed.
Michael said: “We were told he had less than a year to live and I remember looking at Ant and he looked defeated, far from his usual upbeat self and that was a moment when it all became real.”
Michael has organised a charity golf day on May 6 at Cottrell Park Golf Resort in Cardiff to remember Ant and raise money for Brain Tumour Research.
Now in its seventh year, the charity golf day has raised almost £7,000 and this year 88 people are expected to take part.
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Currently, Brain Tumour Research claims the disease receives only one per cent of the UK national spend on cancer research.
Mel Tiley, community development manager at Brain Tumour Research, said: “We were so very sorry to learn about Ant and we are sending our thoughts to the family.
"It’s incredibly heart-warming to hear that Ant’s death has inspired his brother to host an annual event in his memory.
"Ant’s story reminds us that brain tumours are indiscriminate and kill more children and adults under the age of 40 than any other cancer.
"We wish Michael the best of luck for his event this year."
Michael has set up a fundraiser on JustGiving, which can be found here.
To find more information on Brain Tumour Research, visit the website here.
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