David Senez, Jr. Foundation-Brain Tumors
David, a thirty-three year old father of one, battled a rare brain tumor for the past eight years at MD Anderson in Houston, Texas. Although he underwent surgery and radiation in 2007, the tumor came back in 2010. To the astonishment of his care team at MD Anderson and after undergoing Gama Knife Radiosurgery in the Summer of 2010, we were miraculously blessed to welcome a baby boy in the Spring of 2011. Despite a good year of stability, the tumor again came back in 2011. Before his son’s first birthday in April of 2011, we traveled back to Houston for David to undergo more radiation and chemotherapy. Shy of just a year after his last dose of radiation, the tumor began to reoccur in 2012, in which he began chemotherapy that showed no promise. In the summer of 2013, he began clinical trials at MD Anderson.
Due to the rare nature of his tumor, known as hermangiopericytoma, there is currently no known standard of care. Therefore, with the help of amazing family and friends, we were able to explore alternative medical treatment, such as intravenous vitamin, hydrogen peroxide and photon therapies. He experimented with two trials, before the opportunity came for him to try a new treatment, known as laser ablation, to give him some relief. After two laser surgeries, the tumor continued to grow onto his brain stem. After a relentless journey, Dave gained his angel wings on June 30, 2014. As all his doctors, family, and friends would describe, Dave was truly one of the strongest, most positive people to ever endure this challenge. He never once showed fear or weakness. To continue his legacy, our mission is to spread his love and care to others called to this challenge, and to continue his fight to find a cure.
The establishment of our foundation began in David’s name to help our own and many others, like David, continue to have access to alternative medicine, when standard treatment is just not enough. With the help of an annual Brain Tumor Race, we look forward to providing funds to research and helping others with the financial burden of the extraneous travel expense. The goal of the David Senez, Jr. Foundation is to continue to make a difference in the fight against Brain Tumors by providing private funds to ground breaking research, such as Anti-CD47 Research conducted at Stanford University. With the help of donations from supporters such as you, we will continue to see improvements in this fight.
