Brit mum blacks out on flight before doctors uncover condition that affects 100 people WORLDWIDE

Brit mum blacks out on flight before doctors uncover condition that affects 100 people WORLDWIDE Mum-of-one Nia Jones has a condition estimated to affect just 100 people worldwide - and first discovered something was wrong when she suddenly blacked out on a plane A mum has told how she blacked out on a plane before being diagnosed with an ultra-rare condition that affects just 100 people worldwide. Nia Jones was ready to jet off to Barcelona for a quick city break - having only just returned to Britain from a whirlwind trip to Paris with her daughter the day before - when she began uncontrollably shaking. She lost consciousness and woke up in the middle of the aisle with a "thumping headache", before being whisked off to hospital after the plane made an emergency landing in France. The frightening episode began months of mystery health struggles that saw her diagnosed with multiple endocrine neoplasia type four - a rare type of tumour. Mum-of-one Nia, from Ruthin, Wales, said: "Everything went black. When I woke up, I was lying in the middle of the plane aisle with a thumping headache. "Blurry faces came into view and a woman said gently that I was in Paris. I asked where my daughter was, as I thought coming home from there was all a dream. "But then my partner, Bryn, came next to me and said I was safe. I felt so confused as I was stretchered off to the hospital." Nia even briefly turned blue during the incident in June 2015, and was taken for further tests when the plane landed in Paris. Multiple brain scans did not detect anything unusual, and she soon returned back home via the Eurostar, expecting the whole ordeal to be a "one-off". It wasn't - and after suffering further seizures, doctors told her she had epilepsy. She said: "I had to give up my driving licence in case it happened again. "It was so stressful. Six months later, I blacked out again at home. In hospital, I was diagnosed with epilepsy, but my blood tests revealed my calcium levels were abnormally high." Nia was later diagnosed multiple endocrine neoplasia type four, of which there are less than 100 confirmed cases worldwide. It causes mutations in the tumour suppressor gene and places sufferers at high risk of developing tumours in the endocrine organs, such as the thyroid, pancreas and ovaries. Recalling her reaction to the diagnosis, she said: "I was speechless. The consultant didn’t know if it had caused my epilepsy, but my high calcium levels could cause seizures." Nia went on to have an operation to remove three parathyroid glands (in the neck, behind the thyroid) to keep her levels in check - and hasn't suffered a single seizure since then. She’s also been able to get her driving licence back and says she is "doing well", adding: "I want to speak out about my condition, as it’s so rare. "People could be living with it without knowing. I’m proof that with the right treatment, there is chance to live a normal life."