Five mums who became close friends after losing children to brain tumours have jumped out of a plane together.<br /><br />Louise Fox, 49, began making online contact with other mums caring for kids with tumours after son George was diagnosed with glioblastoma, aged 13. <br /><br />During his treatment, Louise met Niki O’Dea Patel, 42, Nikki Treharne, 52, Clair Todd, 48, and Katie Dove, 46.<br /><br />All of their children were diagnosed with different types of brain tumours, and met on various Facebook pages.<br /><br />The mums would chat regularly on WhatsApp, exchanging treatment options and supporting each other, alongside three other mums in the same position.<br /><br />All eight of their children died between 2020 and 2022, and the mums formed a strong friendship to help one another through their grief.<br /><br />They created the page Forever Mums of Brain Tumour Angels and finally all met in person minutes before five of them jumped out a plane art 13,000ft.<br /><br />Their jump raised £70,700 for brain cancer charity Tessa Jowell Foundation.<br /><br />Louise, from Barton-le-Clay in Bedfordshire, said: “We’re all mums to an angel and the skydive helped us feel closer to them.<br /><br />"Losing George was indescribable. <br /><br />“I came up with the idea for the jump. <br /><br />“I’m absolutely petrified of heights but I really wanted to push our boundaries.<br /><br />“No one else know what it’s like to go through and we’re all part of the same club that no mum wants to be in.<br /><br />"It was incredible and so emotional when we all met. <br /><br />"I feel so connected to these mums through our journeys and grief - it was a very special day."<br /><br />Louise's son George was 13 when he died from a brain tumour in April 2022, after surgeries, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy.<br /><br />While he was receiving treatment, Louise met Niki O'Dea Patel on Facebook, whose eldest son Shay, 13, was diagnosed with same type of tumour in 2018 a seizure. <br /><br />Niki, from Woburn Sands, Milton Keynes, said: "We were fortunate we got 22 months. He passed in September 2020, but it's not good enough. <br /><br />"Louise and I became really close as our sons were the same age.<br /><br />"I started a charity in his name - Shay's Smile - and we've managed to raise over £250,000 for research."<br /><br />Nikki Treharne's son Ethan, 17, from Sandhurst, Berkshire, battled a glioblastoma brain tumour for two years before he passed away in November 2021.<br /><br />Katie Dove, from Worth, Kent, started a charity - the Evie Dove Foundation - after her 13-year-old daughter Evie was diagnosed with CMMRD, a gene mutation that makes children predisposed to developing brain tumours.<br /><br />Evie died 11 months later in April 2021.<br /><br />Clair Todd, from Blyth, Northumberland, joined the group after her son Connor, 15, died from a medulloblastoma brain tumour in October 2021.<br /><br />She said: "Louise bought us together on this Facebook group and we've helped each other get through the most difficult times."<br /><br />Three other mums in their group came on the day to meet the rest of the group for the first time, but couldn't jump for health reasons.
