Man who received tragic diagnosis after trip to Ibiza ‘now can only blink’

Dozens of people came out to support Oli Coppock as they walked 33 miles to his aid

A man is “locked in his body” and “all he can do is blink” as his friends and family urgently try to raise as much money as possible for his rehabilitation care. Oli Coppock was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2023 and doctors discovered he had a brain tumor in the fourth ventricle. After a trip to Ibiza that August, he was told that the tumor had grown and that Oli had to undergo high-risk surgery to remove the mass.

The 32-year-old from Warrington took an intensive course of radiotherapy at his own pace, traveling to Christie Cancer Center in Manchester every day for six weeks for treatment. To mark the end of this journey, Oli set aside to get a tattoo – a Spartan one – which his sister said was to show he was a warrior who could fight anything that came his way.

But on May 11 this year, Oli began experiencing headaches, nausea and fatigue, with his sister Saff Coppock, 22, previously telling the ECHO: “He was very worried at this point and was feeling dizzy and unwell. I don’t know if it could be nothing,’ but he really wanted to check it out.”

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Initially, doctors turned Oli away, but he was admitted to hospital on May 22 after his family pleaded for medical support. The following day, he was found unconscious in the infirmary and suffered cardiac arrest.

An MRI showed that Oli had hydrocephalus, a condition that occurs when there is too much fluid in the brain and can be fatal if left untreated. During emergency surgery to drain the fluid, Oli went into cardiac arrest on the operating table.

After overcoming this, he underwent three more high-risk surgeries over the next two weeks. Oli spent six weeks in an Intensive Care Unit, before moving to a high dependency ward. He now breathes through a tracheostomy and is being fed through a tube.

On Sunday 29th September around 40 people took part in a 53km walk from Manchester to Liverpool, finishing the day-long journey at Caribou Poutine on Hardman Street in Liverpool city centre. Speaking to the ECHO in the final hour of the walk, Oli’s girlfriend of four years, Beth Wright, 33, said: “The walk for us today was to raise awareness but also to raise funds for Oli.

“We don’t know for sure if Oli will be OK, we don’t know what the future holds. In the past we were told he would need to go to a nursing home, at the moment he is in rehab but that could go on for another three, four, five years or it could go on for another six months before we need to think about his care.”

A fundraiser was set up in Oli’s name, with over £20,000 raised in one month. Beth continued: “He’s not well, he can’t talk, he can’t walk, he can’t speak, he can’t drink, he can’t eat. he could before, he can only blink.”

When asked about the walk, Beth said: “It was absolutely amazing, we have his whole family, my family, and then we have his friends and my friends. At one point we have 50 or 60 people here, including those who came. to support us. I’m thrilled with all of this. The number of people who have come up to us and asked us about the walk and then donated £10 or £20 is incredible. To read more or donate to the GoFundMe, click here.