The 26-year-old Kieran Shingler started getting symptoms in 2022 that he believed was Covid-19 before a CT scan uncovered a mass in his brain that led to his death
Jamie Greer Under-35s writer and Olivia Beeson
06:26, 30 Dec 2025
Kieran Shingler
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Kieran Shingler(Image: Supplied)
A man has died after a three year long illness he thought was the flu. The 26-year-old Kieran Shingler started getting severe headaches and losing his appetite on Bonfire Night in 2022.
However, he didn't believe that the symptoms were serious. Both him and his long-term partner Abbie Henstock, 27, thought it was Covid-19.
After a test came back negative the pair believed that he just 'had the flu'. It was only when Kieran’s appetite disappeared and didn’t come back when they reached out to the doctors, Liverpool Echo reports.
Abbie and Kieran together on holiday
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Abbie and Kieran together on holiday(Image: Supplied )
Doctors sent Kieran to Liverpool for treatment and he died in a Warrington hospice earlier this month. His partner paid tribute to Kieran saying: ”He wouldn't hurt a fly. He was so cheeky, he was always playing pranks on his family or friends, or winding people up.
“He was such a family man as well and had a good group of friends around him. He was so chilled. He was so funny and gentle - he had that dry sense of humour. He was such a good lad.”
The Warrington man was a healthy and active young lad before he fell ill in November 2022. Abbie, who is also from the Cheshire town, said: “He just had headaches. I remember he was on Sudafed for like a week and it wasn't really clearing.
“He was into his triathlons and he was so fit and healthy. He loved going out on his bike. He'd do a 10 hour shift at work and then come home and do a swim session. The headaches were putting him off training.
“He was such a foodie as well. He wasn't eating, so that's when we took him to the doctors who then immediately said, you need to go to A&E.”
They originally believed Kieran had the flu
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They originally believed Kieran had the flu(Image: Supplied)
Doctors then believed that Kieran might have had meningitis before a CT scan uncovered a mass in his brain. He was then moved to the Walton Centre in Liverpool, where he had four procedures, including a biopsy. These revealed he had a grade three astrocytoma, an aggressive cancerous growth.
Kieran then underwent radiotherapy and chemotherapy treatment, which started to reduce the tumour, but his latest scan revealed it had begun expanding once more. According to The Brain Tumour Charity, headaches are one of the most common symptoms of a brain tumour. Up to 60 per cent of people living with a brain tumour will develop headaches at some point.
The tumour itself does not directly cause headaches. This is because the brain has no pain receptors. They are caused by a build-up of pressure on pain-sensitive blood vessels and nerves within the brain.
Brain tumours also can cause a reduced appetite. Abbie added: “It didn’t feel real. I remember his mum calling me, saying he's got a mass in his brain. Then we were just thrown into this world, but at this point we didn't know it was cancer.
“We were just thinking, oh, it's just something on his brain, whether it's a blood clot or something that's not that vicious. But then obviously it spiralled.”
Kieran's family were told in December 2022 that his tumour meant he only had 12 months to live. Abbie said: “I remember that day (when we were told). We were in the room with his mum and dad and we just screamed.
“I focus on dates and times, so I was getting really fixated on 'but you don't know when it will come', so I had to learn not to think like that.
“But because he was doing so well, you had to train yourself to live it day by day because he was so cheeky and smiley. He did so well after his surgeries.
"I remember after his fourth surgery, he wanted to go out for a run and we were like, no way. But he just wanted to fight it. He wanted to do it. He was so determined.”
Kieran's love for Liverpool FC and the city grew even stronger during his final months. Abbie said: “He's met the Liverpool players, he met (Jurgen) Klopp when he was manager. After his radiotherapy finished in 2023, we got a box at Anfield to watch the derby.
“He got an award from The Guide Liverpool and we managed to go to that just before he got really ill.
“For his job, he delivered alcohol and drinks in Liverpool, so we know the city. A charity gave us an overnight stay in the Titanic Hotel. We love the city.”
After a fundraising page Kieran's Krew was set up his family and friends collected more than £27,000 for various brain tumour charities, including the Brain Tumour Charity.
Abbie said: “I don't think he realised how many people actually knew until earlier this year when someone came up to him and said, are you Kieran from Kieran’s Krew? Sometimes we were stopped in the shop and people said, you're so inspiring.”
Kieran's health worsened and he died on December 14. His loss led to several of hundreds of messages of condolences on the fund-raising page.
Abbie said: “I can't go through the replies yet, but I've seen how many people it's reached and the amount of messages that we're all getting. It's so nice to know that we're all helping other people through dark times. We knew it was going to happen, we just didn't know when.
“We were fortunate and lucky enough to have two extra years with him. But people who are first diagnosed now, they might see his story and think, oh, there is a chance.”
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Abbie added that she wants to continue raising money for various causes, including St. Rocco's Hospice in Warrington where Kieran spent his final days.
Abbie said: “We just want to continue his legacy and always keep his name alive. He'll never be forgotten, he'll always be with us, but we want to continue sharing his journey.
“We want to continue to help other people going through a brain tumor diagnosis. I speak to so many people who've lost a partner or a son or a wife or whoever, and relating to those people helps me so much.”