Brain tumour may be back, says Tom's dad

THE FATHER of Plymouth's world champion diving star Tom Daley has revealed he may have brain cancer again.

Rob Daley told The Herald that a routine quarterly scan had shown signs of a brain tumour beginning to re-grow.

LAUGHING IT OFF: Rob Daley, above, says he's 'more concerned about going to the dentist' than about signs that his brain tumour is returning, and insists he won't let it interfere with son Tom's diving career. Below: Tom on his return from the Beijing Olympic Games

Rob, 39, had an operation four years ago in which surgeons removed most of the huge tumour. He says he is determined that the new diagnosis will not stop him watching Tom, aged 15, compete at the London Olympic Games in 2012, nor cause his son to lose his focus on diving.

Speaking yesterday from Sheffield, where he was watching Tom take part in the British Gas National Cup, Rob said: "I'm acting as normal; it's not affecting Tom and I don't want any distractions. I get scanned every three months, but the results this time weren't as good as the ones I'd been having.

"The consultant said they suggested there were signs of growth; it was bad news, but when people ask me how I feel, I say, 'About 19'; I'll keep on laughing and keep telling jokes."

Rob said he wasn't in pain – just as he wasn't the day before his operation on a fist-sized tumour, 80 per cent of which surgeons were able to remove.

"For six weeks I had intensive radiotherapy every day," Rob said, "but I didn't have chemotherapy, and I can always have another operation if I need one. The longer it goes on, the more pioneering techniques pop up around the world. I'm more concerned about going to the dentist!"

Rob supports Tom full-time, travelling with him to diving events all over the world. His eldest son was Britain's youngest athlete at the 2008 Olympics and is a realistic contender for a gold medal in 2012.

Tom forced to settle for second – Pages 34 and 35