This fundraiser is being created to help Kat manage the months ahead as she has been diagnosed with a grade 3 meningioma (brain cancer). She will require a craniotomy in early January followed by targeted radiation and intensive rehabilitation. The hope is to assist Kat financially with travel costs for medical appointments and her basic living expenses while she is unable to work during recovery. Any donation - big or small - will help Kat in her fight to recover.

Please take a read through Kat's full story below:

A Story of Strength: Kat’s Fight Through Rare and Aggressive Tumors

In 2019, after years of worsening headaches, Kat’s world changed with a devastating discovery: a brain tumor the size of a grapefruit. She underwent an emergency craniotomy, and surgeons were able to remove the entire mass. Pathology classified it as a Grade 1 atypical meningioma—non-malignant, and considered lower risk. With hope for a stable future, Kat chose to avoid radiation at that time and focused on healing, despite lingering numbness in her left leg.

In August 2022, things took a frightening turn. Kat experienced sudden numbness and electric shock sensations on the left side of her face and arm while at work. After months of fighting for answers and repeat emergency visits, a CT scan finally revealed a recurrence—two new tumors growing in the same area of her brain.

In March 2023, Kat endured her second craniotomy. This time, her neurosurgeon was forced to leave a small portion of one of the tumors behind as it had been sitting dangerously close to a main vein. Damaging it could have been fatal. New pathology showed that her original tumor had been mis-graded. It was actually a Grade 2 meningioma, still non-malignant, but far more stubborn and prone to return. She began radiation therapy, hoping to slow any future regrowth, but the toll on her body was immense. The numbness on her left side became permanent, and issues with balance and motor control continued to challenge her daily life.

Meanwhile, Kat had been coping with severe lower-back pain for years, though it was overshadowed by the urgent needs of her brain surgeries. In February 2025, an MRI finally provided answers—and more heartbreak. A tumor was found in her S1/S2 region of the spine. A surgical biopsy confirmed a Grade 3 rhabdoid meningioma: extremely rare, highly aggressive, and malignant. Doctors also suspected she carried a genetic condition called BAP1 Tumor Predisposition Syndrome, a mutation that dramatically increases cancer risk.

In May 2025, Kat underwent a laminectomy to remove the spinal tumor. Her surgeon could take only about 50% of it as the remainder was crushed into the nerves of her spine, and removing it would risk paralysis. Shortly after surgery, genetic testing confirmed the diagnosis: Kat has the BAP1 mutation, meaning her body lacks a key protein that helps suppress tumor formation. She is significantly more prone to developing multiple types of cancer throughout her life.

Following surgery, Kat completed 35 sessions of high-dose radiation to her spine, fighting to prevent the tumor’s return. But while still undergoing this treatment, her routine 6-month brain MRI delivered more devastating news. The small fragment of brain tumor left behind during her 2023 surgery had doubled in size. Both her oncologist and neurosurgeon agreed: because of her BAP1 mutation, the tumor is behaving aggressively and is now considered cancerous. Surgery is required again, and soon.

Kat was offered a December 18th surgery date but chose the first week of January so she could spend precious time with loved ones over the holidays. The recovery is expected to take 4–6 months, depending on the neurological deficits caused during surgery. Her neurosurgeon is particularly concerned about the function of her left leg. She will likely need extensive occupational and physiotherapy, along with another full round of brain radiation, despite it not usually being recommended so soon. Every surgery becomes more complex and more dangerous. Full removal will not be possible, but her team must still attempt to remove as much tumor as they safely can.

Throughout all of this, Kat has faced repeated stretches of short- and long-term disability. She has spent months away from work, used all her savings, and withdrawn her RRSPs just to stay afloat. The constant cycle of medical emergencies has left her financially drained.

Kat knows that everyone is facing challenges right now. She never expected to be here, fighting for her health, her independence, and her future. But she also knows that even the strongest people sometimes need help.

Despite everything she has endured, Kat continues to meet each challenge with courage, humour, and grace. She is determined to keep fighting, she just needs support to make it through the long road ahead.