Brain Surgery for Mom

These last couple of weeks have been the worst nightmare a child could ever have. I am generally not one to ask for help, but I cannot ever imagine needing it more than I do right now. I've asked for my friends prayers and positive words, and I'm so grateful for them. My immediate family (my mom and brother) is small, but my friends have always been my family, and right now, I need them more than ever.

As most of my friends know, after already surviving a heart attack in 2015, Christmas of last year my mom became very ill and was diagnosed with breast cancer. Doctors acted quickly and she had a single mastectomy to remove the mass and stop it from spreading. With my mother living in Panama, it was very hard on me. I couldn’t be there for her the way I wished I could be. She used her retirement savings towards her health and treatment, not knowing what lay ahead, but with determination to survive. Always a fighter, my mom stayed as positive as she could be and pushed through. She was determined to live, and travel and enjoy her retirement with her husband. Despite a few hiccups during her recovery she exceeded doctors expectations and came to visit me in Toronto during February 2018.

It was during this visit, she told me about her plans to reconnect with her siblings in the UK that she hasn’t seen for quite some time. Fast forward to now - A few weeks ago, while she was in the UK on this much-anticipated trip, her health took another sudden turn for the worse. After not hearing from her for a few days, which was very unusual, I started to worry. I called my cousin, and then my uncle called to inform me that she didn’t seem to be herself. She was having problems with her vision, forgetting things like her phone pin and where she was, as well as bumping into things. She was hospitalized in the UK and tests were ordered, which suggested that she had a lesion on her brain. Speaking to her at this time was incredibly scary and sad. This was not the sharp and precise mom I knew and was familiar with. She could not remember simple things that she was so quick with just days before and she seemed to me to be a completely different person.

Out of urgency, her husband flew from Panama to England to turn around and bring her back to Panama the following day, as she was unable to fly alone. She could not even fill out her customs card on her own.  Once back in Panama it was determined that a tumor lodged 7cm deep, about 3 cm in size, nearing the base of her brain was the cause of her symptoms. Since discovering this mass, her health has deteriorated rapidly. I am currently writing from a hospital in Panama at her beside unsure of what the days ahead will look like. She went from taking glimpses of me, to not opening her eyes at all. She doesn't speak. She simply only nods at times. She's so very tiny. She's being fed by a feeding tube. But when I ask her does she have fight left in her, she nods 'yes'. So I'm here fighting with and for her.

Initially, they wanted to do neurosurgery this week, but after discovering blood clots in her legs and lungs she has been placed on blood thinners to address this major concern. She is now unable to undergo neurosurgery, while on the medication as she could bleed out, and would need to come off the thinners for a minimum of 12 days, which is simply too long for her to withstand. In the meantime, she may not last ten days without a radio therapy procedure to shrink the tumor that is continuing to grow, swell, and cause possibly irreparable damage to the brain.

Sadly, these procedures are all incredibly costly and while my mother has some money left for a rainy day, she doesn't have nearly enough to face this challenge. 

Her husband (she was married February 2017, which I planned and I was so happy for her), my brother and I, are hoping that with this campaign, we can raise the money needed to give her the chance to fight this battle and stay with us. 

Here are the procedures and costs associated so the funds needed and where they will be directed are transparent. I don't want anything more than for her to be able to have the necessary procedures done: 
- procedure to stop blood clots using a filter in a vein in her thigh $6,000USD
- medical transportation from her current hospital to a specialty hospital in Panama City $10,000USD
- radio therapy sessions $20,000+USD
- radiology $30,000+USD
- neurosurgery (at a later date) $48,000USD
(the above costs were approximated based on initial assessments as of Monday October 22nd, 2018)


UPDATED SPENDING TO DATE (Canadian Dollars) as of November 4, 2018:
-Radio Therapy Surgery at Cirro (Panama City) = $19,787.18 (5 rounds of treatment have been completed)
-Hospital Nacional Doctor Fees, Medicine, and Care (Panama City) = $11,806.13
-Ambulance with Grupo Vive  (to and from Panama City) = $6,799.32 (6hr ambulance ride to Panama City)
-Mae Lewis Hospital (David, Chiriqui) = $20,593.50 (which included her meds, care, blood clot procedure)
TOTAL SPEND = $58,986.13

The funds we continue to raise will help her to have care (intended to be in her home) with hopes of her improving from her radio therapy surgery.


If 1,400 people are able to donate at least $50 each, that would complete the goal of raising $70K (which is not the total costs but a huge contribution) to get her the care she needs. 


My mother is everything to me.  Her radiant energy, caring sole, huge heart, and passion for life and love is what attracts people to want to be around her and remain around her. This energy has helped her connect with so many people and create everlasting friendships wherever she goes, a trait I have inherited and am known for.  Beyond her spirit, my mom has shown me how to be a good friend, she's shown me time and time again how to show up for people, how to lend support and contribute to the lives of others. 

She's my best friend, I tell her everything and she advises me (and my friends, and her friends) through everything. She has fought this before and I know she can fight it again, this time with me by her side. I need to give her a chance to continue to advise me, to attend my future wedding, to see my future kids, and to just be my mom even just a little longer. Or at least to see a beach again.



Thank you so much for listening to my mother's story and please continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers.

Please stay connected by following our updates. And by following my Instagram stories for steady updates. @experience818events