David Izekor was given his diagnosis aged just 18
The 22-year-old brother of a filmmaker who passed away in November, aged 23, from an aggressive form of brain cancer, is raising funds to cover funeral expenses and arrange a screening of his documentary film One In Two, which documents his journey as a teenage cancer patient and “kept him going” during treatment. David Izekor was diagnosed with glioblastoma multiforme, an aggressive brain cancer, in 2021 at the age of 18.
Following a haemorrhagic stroke – bleeding in the brain caused by the rupture of a blood vessel – he required emergency brain surgery and was diagnosed with the rare cancer, which typically carries a life expectancy of just 12 to 18 months. Despite enduring two 10-hour brain operations, a combination of medications, and his remarkable determination, David survived for several years, passing away on November 12, 2025, at the age of 23.
His brother John Izekor, 22, is now raising money to pay for the funeral. With their mum having died in 2022, John has no family to lean on during this period of grief, but he said the generous contributions to his GoFundMe – which has now reached nearly £9,000 – has “given me something to smile about in such dark times”.
At 18, like many young men his age, David left his London home to pursue a film degree at the University of Leeds. A gifted creative and dedicated filmmaker, he was on the verge of achieving his dream when tragedy struck just months into his first year at university.
In 2021, David suffered a haemorrhagic stroke one evening. An emergency procedure revealed a mass – later identified as glioblastoma multiforme, a rare and aggressive brain cancer – requiring a 10-hour operation to properly diagnose the tumour.
At that time, John and David’s mother was in Italy caring for her father, who was dying from Covid. Consequently, John was alone at their London home when he learned of his brother’s diagnosis, before their mother returned to be with her sons. Tragically, their mother passed away in 2022 – a devastating blow that deeply affected both brothers.
“He was struggling a lot, adjusting to that life for the next year after his diagnosis, but then eventually, when he came to terms with everything… something changed in him,” John said. “He became very, very strong.”
David dealt with his situation in the way he knew best: by creating a film documenting his journey as a teenage cancer patient. For his final degree project – a course that ultimately took five years instead of the typical three – he produced One In Two, a documentary capturing not only his own personal experience but also those of others living with glioblastoma.
The film had its premiere in August 2025 at Working Title’s head office – a production company and Universal subsidiary – where John is employed, having been inspired to pursue a career in the film industry by his brother. “What kept him going the whole time was just that film,” John said.
“He was just so enthusiastic about creating. It shows how David is the physical embodiment of what it means to persevere,” he added. “His perseverance was unmatched. He never cried or complained once. There’s a quote in the film of one of his doctors saying: ‘David did things David’s way’.”
In October 2025, after years of battling the cancer without successfully treating it, David’s medical team informed him they needed to cease treatment. Despite their best efforts, there was nothing more they could do for him.
“When he had his premiere for his film, that was the best day of his life,” John said. “And I’m so happy that we were able to make that happen, because that was really big for him. But that day, two months ago now, when they said that they’re stopping the chemo – that was probably the worst day of his life, because we had so many plans, and he had so many plans.”
David was transferred to a hospice in Rochester, Kent, where he received end-of-life care. “He was the youngest person there,” John said.
“In the hospice, that’s where the deterioration process starts happening, so the cancer basically just took control of his whole body. He was fine at first, but slowly, slowly, he just started losing his memory, becoming a bit more slow, very tired.
“He also started losing his ability to eat properly. And then one of the last things was that he lost his vision, and he became blind. So he basically just lost everything.
“The last four days of his life, he entered a permanent unconscious mode where he wasn’t talking. The last thing we ever said to each other was on the phone. I told him I was going to come and see him. I said: ‘Listen, I’m going to be there in two hours, OK?’ And he said to me: ‘John, I don’t think I’ll be here in two hours’.
“I ended up coming anyway, but that was the point where he was just unconscious, so he wasn’t able to speak any more. A few days went by, and then his last moments were when I was by his side.
“He wasn’t talking, and they told me that he wouldn’t be speaking again, but before he passed away, he started humming, which is not what is supposed to happen… Miraculously, he started humming, he hummed four times. I grabbed his hand, and I told him that I’m there, and after his fourth hum, he took his last breath, and then he left us.”
With no mother or other relatives by his side, John has shouldered the burden of arranging his brother’s funeral. Having grown up with limited financial means and lacking family support to cover the substantial funeral expenses, he turned to GoFundMe to raise funds for a fitting farewell that would properly celebrate David’s life.
“I’ve been left in a position where I’m dealing with everything by myself, and I haven’t even got to grieve,” he said. The fundraiser has already attracted close to £9,000 in donations, which means “so much” to John.
Beyond covering funeral costs – which holds great importance to John, raised in a Christian household – he also wishes to arrange a celebration of life for his brother, where he intends to show David’s film so attendees can “take his life as a lesson”.
“He’s someone that a lot of people can learn from,” John said. “He’s one of the wisest people you’d meet, and this fundraiser is really important for me to basically continue on his story, the way he wanted to live, when unfortunately he wasn’t able to do that.”
The kindness of friends, colleagues and strangers who have contributed to the fundraiser has brought hope during this difficult period for John. “It has completely changed what the outcome of this situation could have been,” he said. “It’s turned a really negative thing into quite a positive situation, and it’s given me something to smile about in such dark times, I guess.”
Donate to John’s fundraiser for David’s celebration of life at https://www.gofundme.com/f/kj3yc8-david.
