Gabby Allen couldn’t hold back her tears as she opened up about losing her dad 12 years ago during Wednesday night’s Love Island All Stars. 

In emotional scenes, the girls received video calls from home where Gabby caught up with her younger brother Ethan.

As the siblings chatted away, the influencer asked her model sibling if he thinks their dad would have liked her partner Casey O’Gorman. 

Ethan reᴀssured Gabby that their father Mike, who lost his life to a brain tumour in 2013, at the age of 54, definitely would like Casey causing her to break down in tears. 

Later taking to the beach hut, the stunner got emotional again as she added: ‘It is just so special to hear that, I lost him 12 years ago.’

Gabby’s father Mike – a fit, healthy ex- rugby player – became ill, when she was a 20-year-old student in her third year at the Italia Conti Theatre School in London, while her brother Ethan studied for his A-Levels.

Gabby Allen couldn’t hold back her tears as she opened up about losing her dad 12 years ago during Wednesday night’s Love Island All Stars 

Gabby lost her father Mike to a brain tumour in 2013, at the age of 54

The family’s nightmare started in February 2012 when property developer Mike had a seizure at the wheel of his transit van on the M62. He blacked out and veered off up an embankment.

Gabby has previously opened up about the devastating loss, she said: ‘Thankfully he didn’t crash into any other cars. A lorry driver behind him watched him come off, went to help him and called 999.

‘Next thing Dad knew was waking up in hospital with a broken nose and no recollection of what had happened.’

Doctors discharged him with suspected epilepsy, but Gabby’s mum Paula thought there was more to it.

‘Mum was worried because he’d started mumbling, slurring like he was drunk and getting his words mixed up,’ said Gabby.

‘He became confused, forgetful and had constant ringing in his ears. A week after Dad’s crash, Mum rang the GP and asked if he could have a scan.’

He was referred for a CT scan at his local hospital. Later that day, the GP broke the news that he had a huge mᴀss on his front right temporal lobe.

‘When I came home for the weekend, they sat me and Ethan down in the living room,’ said Gabby.

In emotional scenes, the girls received video calls from home where Gabby caught up with her younger brother Ethan

As the siblings chatted away, the influencer asked her model sibling if he thinks their dad would have liked her partner Casey O’Gorman

Ethan reᴀssured Gabby that their father Mike, who lost his life to a brain tumour in 2013, at the age of 54, definitely would like Casey causing her to break down in tears

Later taking to the beach hut, the stunner got emotional again as she added: ‘It is just so special to hear that, I lost him 12 years ago’

‘Mum said, “We’ve got something to tell you. Dad has got a brain tumour and he’s going to have an operation.”

‘You just don’t think that’s a conversation you’re ever going to have. When you hear brain tumour, you immediately think cancer and when you think cancer, you immediately think death.

‘But we didn’t know it was cancerous then and I think we all just convinced ourselves it wouldn’t be. Dad was just so matter-of-fact about it.’

Mike had a five-and-half hour craniotomy at Walton Hospital, Liverpool in April 2012, when most of the tumour was removed.

Three-and-half weeks later, biopsy results revealed the devastating news that Mike had a grade four glioblastoma – the most common aggressive brain tumour in adults, with an average prognosis time of 12-18 months.

She continued: ‘Being in limbo waiting for the results was hell. When we got them, we were in shock – we just couldn’t take it in at first.

‘I still have the note I made on my mobile phone – glioblastoma multiforme – so I could google it.

‘But I don’t think my dad believed he was going to die, he thought he’d be one of the few who beat the odds.

‘He was always on the computer researching new treatments in America and Germany, talking to other people with the same diagnosis at all hours.

‘And he tried different things – at one point he was taking about 30 herbal tablets a day.’

Gabby’s father Mike – a fit, healthy ex- rugby player – became ill, when she was a 20-year-old student in her third year at the Italia Conti Theatre School in London, while her brother Ethan studied for his A-Levels

Mike’s condition was diagnosed back in 2012 after he had a seizure at the wheel of his van and was referred for a CT scan

After surgery, Gabby’s dad had radiotherapy sessions every day for five weeks and was on Temozolomide chemo tablets.

Gabby said that despite his condition, her father remained in good spirits, she continued: ‘He’d tease the nurses and patients and take the mickey. It was his way of dealing with it and he always saw the funny side of things.’

Four months after Mike’s diagnosis, a scan revealed his tumour had grown.

It wasn’t possible to remove it all due to its position, but he had surgery to debulk it at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery in London.

‘By then, Dad was getting increasingly confused,’ said Gabby.

‘I remember we sat down for Christmas dinner and he picked up a lit candle from the table and was going to drink from it as he thought it was a glᴀss.’

‘Dad was on steroids which made him agitated. He had personality changes and would do weird things like tapping in numbers on an imaginary phone and saying random things.’

Two weeks after his second operation, Mike came home. But sadly his condition then deteriorated quickly.

His pain and symptoms couldn’t be controlled at home, so he went into a hospice on January 13, 2013.

Five days later, Gabby was at her parents’ home as she and Ethan were taking it in turns to walk the dogs.

After radiotherapy and two operations Mike returned home in Januray 2013, and five days later he died in the arms of Gabby’s mother

‘When I saw missed calls from Ethan, I just knew,’ said Gabby. ‘Dad had pᴀssed away in Mum’s arms.

‘It was hard to take in that someone who’d always been so full of life was just gone,’

Gabby revealed that she treasures a recording she’d made of her dad’s breathing on her mobile phone.

‘I also used to listen to his answerphone messages so I could hear his voice,’ she added.

‘I was devastated when my mobile was stolen and I couldn’t listen to his voice mails any more.’

Now Gabby’s many happy family memories comfort her.  

After Mike died, there was a period of adjustment for the shattered family.

‘I was already away and Ethan about to go off to university, so it was really hard on mum. They’d been married for 23 years and suddenly she was alone. She had to become mum and dad to us.

‘Not a day that goes by that I don’t miss Dad. Grief becomes different but you never get over it – it becomes part of you.

‘Dad would have wanted me to get on with my life. He’d be the first to say, ‘Why are you sitting around moping? Live your life.’

WHAT IS A GLIOBLASTOMA? 

Glioblastomas are the most common cancerous brain tumours in adults.

They are fast growing and likely to spread. 

Glioblastomas’ cause is unknown but may be related to a sufferer’s genes if mutations result in cells growing uncontrollably, forming a tumour.

Treatment is usually surgery to remove as much of the tumour as possible, followed by a combination of radio- and chemotherapy (chemoradiation).

It can be difficult to remove all of the growth as glioblastomas have tendrils that extend to other regions of the brain. These are targeted via chemoradiation. 

Glioblastomas are often resistant to treatment as they are usually made up of different types of cells. Therefore, medication will kill off some cells and not others. 

The average survival time is between 12 and 18 months.

Source: The Brain Tumour Charity