'I thought snoring was a blocked nose - it was sign of skull-eroding disease'

Daily Record

28-07-2025

Claire Barbery, 51, began snoring at night after experiencing a continuous blockage in one side of her nose - and almost cancelled her hospital appointment
A mum who started snoring in her sleep after developing a blocked nose was stunned to discover her single symptom was actually a sign of rare cancer. Claire Barbery, 51, almost cancelled the hospital appointment that led to her diagnosis because she didn't want to "waste the time" of the NHS.
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She began experiencing a persistent blockage in one side of her nose but initially put it down to the effects of regular Covid testing while working in a care home. Claire also started snoring in her sleep for the first time and decided to get medical help after using a steroid spray without any improvement in January 2023.
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She was referred to an ENT specialist and following scans and a biopsy, doctors broke the devastating news that she had olfactory neuroblastoma – a rare cancer that develops in the upper part of the nasal cavity. The 5cm tumour had already started eroding bone at the base of her skull and she underwent complex surgery to have it removed at Birmingham's Queen Elizabeth Hospital.
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Claire, from Newquay, Cornwall, is now urging others to seek medical advice for persistent symptoms, no matter how trivial they may seem.
She said: "I very nearly cancelled that appointment because I didn't want to be wasting NHS time. There's nothing wrong, I thought. But looking back, that decision could have cost me my life.
"I started snoring, which I'd never done before. I was waking myself up, breathing through my mouth rather than my nose. Even then, I nearly cancelled my hospital appointment. I didn't want to waste anyone's time I just left it and thought it was something to do with having had COVID the month before."
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Claire has now teamed up with UK charity Get A-Head Charitable Trust to boost awareness of World Head and Neck Cancer Day. She added: "If you know your body, then you've got to push. If there's something wrong, don't ignore it."
The operation in January last year was carried out by consultant surgeon Shahz Ahmed, who specialises in skull base procedures. It was captured as part of the Channel 5 documentary 'Surgeons: A Matter of Life or Death'.
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Mr Ahmed said: "Claire had a very rare form of cancer that needed to be removed. Untreated, it could have metastasized and spread into the neck and the rest of the body. It had already gone through the skull base into the base of the brain and if left, it would have become harder and harder to treat."
The intricate operation involved extracting the tumour, along with Claire's olfactory bulbs – meaning she has permanently lost her sense of smell – and rebuilding the area between her nose and brain.
Mr Ahmed added: "The key worries were operating between the left and the right eye. The main blood supply to the brain is in very close proximity so the risk of seizures, stroke, injury to the brain and loss of life, were all very real. Thankfully, the surgery was a huge success and Claire suffered no complications."
After her operation, Claire endured six weeks of chemotherapy and radiotherapy and is now regularly reviewed by her medical team. She's slowly getting back to work and since her treatment ended, she's been enjoying holidays with her husband Gary and spending more time with her daughters Lowenna, 27, and Keizha, 25.