Blas' Battle Against Brain Cancer
Donation protected
I have known Blas Jasso since he was in grade school, and through the years, we have been through a lot of things together - from basketball games to hunting trips. We have remained in constant contact as he has grown into the man he is today. I have set this page up on behalf of Blas and his family to help raise awareness of the rare cancer he has recently been diagnosed with. Here is his story.
My name is Blas, and I am a 27 year old father, husband, son, brother, uncle, and friend. I have a 3 year old son and a 7 year old step-daughter. My wife (Brittany) and I married almost 2 years ago in June, but have been together for almost 7 years. We just purchased our first and forever home in December 2016. Life Was Perfect, until January 25th 2018.
I started getting numbness on the entire left side of my body multiple time a day, followed by horrible headaches. This lasted for a little over a week. My wife knew that it was not normal and naturally told me to see our family doctor. I had set up my appointment and went over my symptoms with him.
TheDoctor ordered me to get an MRI. The day I had my MRI, my doctor called and told me to come in to discuss my results. My wife and I sat with my doctor and listened to him explain that I had an arachnoid cyst. He referred me to a neurosurgeon to discuss a way to remove it.
Three days later I met with the neurosurgeon, he looked over my scans along with a radiologist and we were told that it was not a cyst but that I did indeed have a brain tumor. He could not confirm if it was a malignant or benign. I had to get a biopsy two days later and stayed in ICU for a day to make sure my brain didn’t bleed or swell.
My family and I waited for what felt like an eternity but went to my follow up two weeks later and on February 20, 2018, it was confirmed it was a malignant tumor. Our hearts sank as it was a fear that we didn’t exactly know how much our lives were about to change. With two small children ages 7 and 3, we feared how this would affect them! How they would handle all the changes that would be happening in their lives they had no control of.
The neurosurgeon sent me to Cleveland Clinic for us to meet with a team of doctors to help set up a treatment plan. I was told that I had an Anaplastic Astrocytoma Glioma, which is a grade III tumor. It is a more aggressive tumor.
On March 13, 2018, we decided to move forward with surgery after weighing the risks and benefits. The doctors said that they felt they could remove the bulk of the tumor. Surgery will be March 22, 2018, and doctors said it would last all day. I will be in the hospital for a few days to recover before I can come home. I know the recovery will be long, but this is one step closer to living a longer life with my family.
On the day of my appointment we were also told I would do 6 1/2 weeks of radiation and chemotherapy in Cleveland, followed by 12 months of chemotherapy at a higher dose. I will have to get an MRI scan every 2 months for the rest of my life to monitor the tumor. If it starts to grow again after treatments they told me they can start treatments again, but I was notified that every time it starts to grow again it will become more aggressive and harder to treat.
I have been off work since February 2nd 2018. I have been put on short term disability which severely cuts my income. My wife has missed days of work and will miss more to help me get through the treatments I go through in Cleveland, so we will lose most of her income as well. I will continue to be off until my doctors release me which could be several more months or years. Medical bills are already coming in and the cost of traveling to Cleveland (which is 4 hours away). We haven’t even begun the treatment process yet. I know first hand how expensive Chemotherapy and the treatment process is because my younger sister fought the fight against Leukemia for 13 months, but unfortunately she lost her battle on February 10th 2014 at the young age of 20 years old.
Even if you can’t donate, prayers and positive messages are just as helpful as we embark on this long journey! We will try to keep this updated as the process moves along.
Thank you for your support,
The Jasso Family
My name is Blas, and I am a 27 year old father, husband, son, brother, uncle, and friend. I have a 3 year old son and a 7 year old step-daughter. My wife (Brittany) and I married almost 2 years ago in June, but have been together for almost 7 years. We just purchased our first and forever home in December 2016. Life Was Perfect, until January 25th 2018.
I started getting numbness on the entire left side of my body multiple time a day, followed by horrible headaches. This lasted for a little over a week. My wife knew that it was not normal and naturally told me to see our family doctor. I had set up my appointment and went over my symptoms with him.
TheDoctor ordered me to get an MRI. The day I had my MRI, my doctor called and told me to come in to discuss my results. My wife and I sat with my doctor and listened to him explain that I had an arachnoid cyst. He referred me to a neurosurgeon to discuss a way to remove it.
Three days later I met with the neurosurgeon, he looked over my scans along with a radiologist and we were told that it was not a cyst but that I did indeed have a brain tumor. He could not confirm if it was a malignant or benign. I had to get a biopsy two days later and stayed in ICU for a day to make sure my brain didn’t bleed or swell.
My family and I waited for what felt like an eternity but went to my follow up two weeks later and on February 20, 2018, it was confirmed it was a malignant tumor. Our hearts sank as it was a fear that we didn’t exactly know how much our lives were about to change. With two small children ages 7 and 3, we feared how this would affect them! How they would handle all the changes that would be happening in their lives they had no control of.
The neurosurgeon sent me to Cleveland Clinic for us to meet with a team of doctors to help set up a treatment plan. I was told that I had an Anaplastic Astrocytoma Glioma, which is a grade III tumor. It is a more aggressive tumor.
On March 13, 2018, we decided to move forward with surgery after weighing the risks and benefits. The doctors said that they felt they could remove the bulk of the tumor. Surgery will be March 22, 2018, and doctors said it would last all day. I will be in the hospital for a few days to recover before I can come home. I know the recovery will be long, but this is one step closer to living a longer life with my family.
On the day of my appointment we were also told I would do 6 1/2 weeks of radiation and chemotherapy in Cleveland, followed by 12 months of chemotherapy at a higher dose. I will have to get an MRI scan every 2 months for the rest of my life to monitor the tumor. If it starts to grow again after treatments they told me they can start treatments again, but I was notified that every time it starts to grow again it will become more aggressive and harder to treat.
I have been off work since February 2nd 2018. I have been put on short term disability which severely cuts my income. My wife has missed days of work and will miss more to help me get through the treatments I go through in Cleveland, so we will lose most of her income as well. I will continue to be off until my doctors release me which could be several more months or years. Medical bills are already coming in and the cost of traveling to Cleveland (which is 4 hours away). We haven’t even begun the treatment process yet. I know first hand how expensive Chemotherapy and the treatment process is because my younger sister fought the fight against Leukemia for 13 months, but unfortunately she lost her battle on February 10th 2014 at the young age of 20 years old.
Even if you can’t donate, prayers and positive messages are just as helpful as we embark on this long journey! We will try to keep this updated as the process moves along.
Thank you for your support,
The Jasso Family
Fundraising team: One Team (3)
Jason M Goble
Organizer
Hicksville, OH
Brittany Jasso
Beneficiary
Blas Jasso
Team member
Danielle Mccoy
Team member
