Kathleen beats brain tumour
Donation protected
My name is Kathleen Edwards; I am 35 years old and I have a brain tumour (he is 11mm and I call him Eddie) and a pineal cyst (this one is 22mm and is known as Cliff).
In September 2015, I moved from the US to Bristol, England. In October 2015 I started to have more headaches than normal but brushed it off as stress from moving and starting a new job. In January 2016, my symptoms worsened and I began having vertigo, bad heachaches ( pretty much 24/7), lightheadness (again 24/7), and I started being woken up in the early hours of the morning with an intense, searing pain in the top of my head. These are just a few of the problems Cliff and Eddie were causing me.
When I went to my GP, he sent me for an MRI, which is when they found Cliff. In March, I ended up in the hospital twice; after more testing they found Eddie. At the time, they thought Eddie was a colloid cyst, which is a type of benign brain tumour. A colloid cyst is normally found in the third ventricle of the brain, but Eddie is in my upper left ventricle. For this reason, Eddie has been relabelled as a mystery tumour (I am a pioneer!).
Since then I have been in the hospital a number of times and they have been trying to manage my symptoms. However, I am not getting better and am sick all the time. I have a low quality of life and this isn't going to change until Eddie and Cliff are gone. I am unable to work right now, unable to walk around town, or stand long enough to cook for myself. Even simple things like having a shower or talking on the phone can be very physically and mentally draining and I am basically forced to stay indoors almost all of the time.
My doctors have decided to remove Eddie, the mystery tumour, and drain Cliff, the pineal cyst, which will happen early in August 2016. They are planning to try a less invasive approach and do a Key Hole Surgery. They will also need to use a robotic arm as the ventricles in my brain are too small for human hands to do the surgery. If they are unable to preform the surgery via key hole, then they will preform a craniotomy.
I am fortunate enough that since I pay UK taxes I get free NHS healthcare, so I do not need financial help with medical bills (if I were in the US I would be drowning in them with what I am going through). However, I do need to pay for my medication, and I have a lot of medication. Mainly, what I need help with is my basic living expenses, since I am not working and have not been working for some time now. Any money I had managed to save I have been forced to use up. I am trying to see where I can cut things out. Since I am too sick to drive, I plan to "Sorn" my car (declare it as being kept off road), which means I can stop paying car insurance. Unfortunately, that leaves a lot of expenses that need paying for.
Any money that is donated will be used for my basic living expenses: food shopping, utility bills, medicine prescriptions, taxi fares and other necessities. I am not sure when I will be returning to work and when I do, it will be on a gradual, part-time basis, working a few hours a week at first, then very slowly working my way back to full-time. If all goes well with my surgery then I am hoping I can be full-again by January 2017. This is a best-case scenario; it could end up taking a lot longer.
If you know me, you know I hate to ask for help and I especially hate asking for money. But Eddie and Cliff have taken over my life right now and since I have been out of work for while now with no sight of going back... I need your help. So, a few friends encouraged me to set up this page. If you feel you can help, please do and know your money is going to good use. If you can't help, please pray for me and my family as we go through this. This is crazy for sure!
Thank you so much! You will never know just how grateful I am for your help! You mean so much to me and I can only hope one day I can repay the favour!
With a grateful heart,
Kathleen
In September 2015, I moved from the US to Bristol, England. In October 2015 I started to have more headaches than normal but brushed it off as stress from moving and starting a new job. In January 2016, my symptoms worsened and I began having vertigo, bad heachaches ( pretty much 24/7), lightheadness (again 24/7), and I started being woken up in the early hours of the morning with an intense, searing pain in the top of my head. These are just a few of the problems Cliff and Eddie were causing me.
When I went to my GP, he sent me for an MRI, which is when they found Cliff. In March, I ended up in the hospital twice; after more testing they found Eddie. At the time, they thought Eddie was a colloid cyst, which is a type of benign brain tumour. A colloid cyst is normally found in the third ventricle of the brain, but Eddie is in my upper left ventricle. For this reason, Eddie has been relabelled as a mystery tumour (I am a pioneer!).
Since then I have been in the hospital a number of times and they have been trying to manage my symptoms. However, I am not getting better and am sick all the time. I have a low quality of life and this isn't going to change until Eddie and Cliff are gone. I am unable to work right now, unable to walk around town, or stand long enough to cook for myself. Even simple things like having a shower or talking on the phone can be very physically and mentally draining and I am basically forced to stay indoors almost all of the time.
My doctors have decided to remove Eddie, the mystery tumour, and drain Cliff, the pineal cyst, which will happen early in August 2016. They are planning to try a less invasive approach and do a Key Hole Surgery. They will also need to use a robotic arm as the ventricles in my brain are too small for human hands to do the surgery. If they are unable to preform the surgery via key hole, then they will preform a craniotomy.
I am fortunate enough that since I pay UK taxes I get free NHS healthcare, so I do not need financial help with medical bills (if I were in the US I would be drowning in them with what I am going through). However, I do need to pay for my medication, and I have a lot of medication. Mainly, what I need help with is my basic living expenses, since I am not working and have not been working for some time now. Any money I had managed to save I have been forced to use up. I am trying to see where I can cut things out. Since I am too sick to drive, I plan to "Sorn" my car (declare it as being kept off road), which means I can stop paying car insurance. Unfortunately, that leaves a lot of expenses that need paying for.
Any money that is donated will be used for my basic living expenses: food shopping, utility bills, medicine prescriptions, taxi fares and other necessities. I am not sure when I will be returning to work and when I do, it will be on a gradual, part-time basis, working a few hours a week at first, then very slowly working my way back to full-time. If all goes well with my surgery then I am hoping I can be full-again by January 2017. This is a best-case scenario; it could end up taking a lot longer.
If you know me, you know I hate to ask for help and I especially hate asking for money. But Eddie and Cliff have taken over my life right now and since I have been out of work for while now with no sight of going back... I need your help. So, a few friends encouraged me to set up this page. If you feel you can help, please do and know your money is going to good use. If you can't help, please pray for me and my family as we go through this. This is crazy for sure!
Thank you so much! You will never know just how grateful I am for your help! You mean so much to me and I can only hope one day I can repay the favour!
With a grateful heart,
Kathleen
Organizer
Kathleen Edwards
Organizer
