At the end of my 6th grade year in school, I suddenly went completely deaf in my right ear. My parents also noticed that my smile seemed a little crooked. After a visit to my pediatrician, I was referred to a pediatric neurologist at the Egleston campus of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. I was evaluated there and after a two hour MRI, I was diagnosed with a medulloblastoma, a malignant brain tumor. That was June 9, 2003. Just two days later I had surgery, followed by six weeks of radiation and a year of chemotherapy.
Soon after I finished my treatments in the summer of 2004, my tumor came back. The doctors didn’t expect me to live much longer. We were told that we needed to go on my Make A Wish trip within two weeks. We did go on that trip and when we came home, I had another MRI. The tumor had begun to shrink without any further treatment! God had a different plan for me! Within a year, the tumor was completely gone! I still have regular MRIs every six months, and know that with every MRI my life could change forever.
Cancer has taken a lot from me in this fight for my life. I’m almost completely deaf now. My tumor took my hearing in my right ear and I’ve lost much of the hearing in my left ear due to chemo. I also have problems with processing sound. Also, as a result of my radiation treatments, I had a 52 degree curve in my spine that could only be corrected by surgery. I had to wait five years for my doctor to finally agree to let me have that surgery, because having all that metal in my back makes it harder to see a recurrence of cancer. But I did have very successful back surgery this summer! My back is now completely straight and I no longer wear a back brace at night! I rarely feel any pain.
I lost touch with many of my friends after my diagnosis and making new friends has been hard because of my hearing loss. I have no feeling on the right side of my face, and almost no sight in my right eye. As with many brain tumor patients, my balance is also a huge issue. I have trouble walking and maintaining my balance. The physical activities available to me now are limited, too.
Cancer has taken away too many other little things in my life to name them all here. But it has also given me many gifts. The greatest gift has been my Angel Fund. In addition to that, I’ve met some amazing people. I’ve met healthcare workers who I admire. I’ve met famous people with wonderful hearts and I’ve made many new friends. I’ve become so grateful for every day I’m given on this earth. And last year, I started going to Providence Christian Academy. What a gift that was. I am extremely happy there and am a senior this year! I will graduate in May, 2009 and I’m planning on going to Reinhardt College next year. I’ll probably major in either biology or psychology, but we’ll see!
