Fight for Casey

FIGHT FOR CASEY

This October, I will partake in The Longboard Bar and Grill Fight for your cause Charity Boxing Night in Townsville. I will be fighting alongside a close mate Chais Sale who is also fighting to help raise money for his cousin's Family.

Chais' cousin Casey Townsend sadly lost his battle in June this year at the age of 32 after a tough battle against a brain tumour and stroke. He sadly left behind his wife Sharna and their 3 beautiful kids (Sienna, 7, Sonny, 3 and Ellie, 20 months). I will be fighting to help raise money so that Sharna can continue to provide for her kids who have sadly lost their Dad at such an early age.
Please see Casey’s story below.

Casey was only 32yrs old when he collapsed after suffering a stroke while working as a concreter last September and taken to Princess Alexandra Hospital in Brisbane where he then went on to suffer a second stroke a week later. Doctors said they needed to operate to get a blood clot from his brain but it was very risky. Casey got through the procedure and was transferred to Gold Coast University Hospital in October, where further tests were done, revealing a brain tumour. 
Casey and Sharna were in the final stages of planning their wedding in February this year but they could wait no longer after the stroke. They married two days later in a hospital courtyard with my uncle Les helping Casey stand for the ceremony.
A week before Christmas, Casey became very short of breath and was rushed back to hospital where his heart rate hit 260 beats per minute and went into cardiac arrest. Doctors performed CPR and he recovered, only to have a second cardiac arrest, at which point his heart stopped, so he actually passed away.
Successfully restarting his heart, doctors told Sharna that Casey needed to be moved to Brisbane’s Prince Charles Hospital but might not survive the transfer. He survived the trip, however in a further crushing blow, was diagnosed with congestive heart failure, where fluid builds up in the body’s organs. The only option was a transplant.
Unfortunately this would not be immediately possible because the immunosuppressant drugs required before an organ transplant would cause the tumour in his brain to grow aggressively.
Casey was not well enough to have the tumour removed, his heart wouldn’t hold out under anaesthetic so they were trying to make him stronger and then perform the transplant as soon as possible. This was a slow process, to make matters worse he was also battling pneumonia. 
Sadly, Casey lost his battle early Sunday morning 9th June in the Gold Coast University Hospital with his family by his side.