Brain Surgery & Medical Expenses

Hi, my name is Bryan. I was diagnosed with a 3.5cm benign brain tumor in my pituitary gland when I was 19. I'm now 23 and I still have the tumor along with many medications to take to control it. The word benign is very misleading and a better word would be non-cancerous because this tumor is far from being "benign". The pituitary gland in the brain is called the master control gland because it directs hormones to many parts of the body. It is very important for this gland to work properly to have a "normal" quality of life.

Because of this tumor I have not gone through puberty (hypongonadatropic hypogonadism) and that in itself causes a host of other problems such as very weak muscles, no sexual development either mentally or physically, and gynecomastia. The tumor causes too much prolactin hormone to be made (mine was at 5000 when normal for a man is 10). Prolactin is for women when they're breastfeeding, unfortunately for me it has caused me to lactate which is extremely distressing and shows just how far this disease has gone.

The unbalanced hormones cause havoc with my body and react with many other bodily functions, for example cortisol from the adrenal glands above the kidneys. If cortisol falls too low it becomes an adrenal crisis and is life threatening, so because of this my cortisol needs to be checked to make sure it is properly balanced. One of the medicines I take is called cabergoline and it is what lowers my prolactin. It is supposed to shrink the tumor as well, but the tumor is too large. Since it is so large I must undergo surgery to remove the bulk of the tumor and because it is in such a small space they will not be able to get it all. After surgery radiation will most likely be considered. After all this I will still need to take medicine and replacement hormones for the rest of my life and get frequent MRIs to check for regrowth which happen somewhat often especially when they are large.

My testosterone was less than 20 when a normal man my age should be closer to 1000 and this causes my body to be in constant stress with weak muscles, weight gain, depression, and severe anxiety. So far I have been unable to work because of these conditions, though not through lack of trying. I have been injured in every occupation I have tried and this has made working even harder as I'm even prone to falling randomly now. My parents have been very kind to take care of me while I'm suffering, but this disease has taken more than they can handle financially and I'm hoping to secure funds to continue my treatment. Please consider helping with any amount and it will be greatly appreciated. Thank you and God bless you.