Josh Christy - A Battle Against Brain Cancer

The Story: Josh Christy (age 36) has dedicated his life to the service of his country as an Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician in the US Navy. He has served in some of the most dangerous places in the world, but he’s known by his friends, family and brothers and sisters in arms for his warm smile, hearty laugh, and love of a good time. Josh is a well-trained and seasoned warrior who will need every bit of his incredible strength and courage as he faces what might be the toughest battle of his life. With his wife, Stirling, by his side and his sons, Jack and Murphy, who’ve “got his six”, he is ready to fight a formidable foe: aggressive brain cancer.

 

In January 2022, Josh contracted Covid-19. He was ill with some of the common Covid symptoms, but he recovered from most of the mild symptoms in about a week. Over the next few weeks, however, Josh began to have headaches every day. This seemed easy to overlook and brush off as symptoms of his prior illness as he prepared for a 9-month overseas deployment in late January.

 

Josh deployed on schedule, but the constant headaches did not cease. In fact, they became increasingly severe and long-lasting. On many days, Josh had severe headaches that lasted 24 hours at a time, day after day. Stirling was very concerned and started to encourage Josh to go get checked out. The headaches began to cause more severe symptoms, such as vomiting, eye pain, light sensitivity, and double vision.

 

After 5 months of non-stop chronic headaches, vision changes and vomiting (and pressure from Stirling), Josh worked with his leadership to return home to San Diego at the beginning of June. Anyone who knows him can understand that it was a very tough decision for Josh to leave his team and return home from deployment early. That turned out to be a good decision.

 

His symptoms did not improve at home. After a particularly bad morning, he was rushed to the ER where he spent a grueling and uncertain night. Josh and Stirling received the news that they had feared for several months. Josh has a large mass on his brain, likely from exposures doing the very job he loves for his country. The next few weeks were filled with many doctors’ appointments and tests. In mid-June, Josh underwent a biopsy to collect a sample of the brain tumor.

 

At this time, he has been diagnosed with aggressive, incurable brain cancer that involves multiple lobes of the brain. As it stands today, resection (surgical removal) of the tumor is not possible without catastrophic risks.

 

Josh has been on medication to relieve his symptoms, prevent seizure risk and manage side effects of his upcoming treatments. He’s been able to enjoy some time with Stirling, the boys, and his brother while he prepares for aggressive treatment.

The Plan: Being located in San Diego, Josh will have access to some of the best doctors and most cutting-edge treatments. He has been accepted into California Protons Cancer Therapy Center and will begin proton therapy radiation in the next few weeks. Proton radiation is known for being highly effective and causing less damage to surrounding tissue.

 

Josh will receive oncology care at the University of California San Diego (UCSD). He will be treated with a strong oral chemotherapy drug specific for brain cancer. The proton radiation will be 5 days a week for about 6 weeks, and the chemotherapy will be taken daily for about 6 weeks. After the initial treatments, the medical team will evaluate the next steps.

 

The next few months are going to be tough on Josh and the Christy family. They are so grateful for all of the family, friends, and teammates who have reached out to help with gift cards, grocery delivery, and plans for a meal train. A huge thank you to Josh’s brother, Travis, who is taking time away from his job (and family) in the US Coast Guard to stay with the Christys in San Diego and help during this difficult time.

Stirling works full-time, but fortunately, her employer is going to offer flexibility, so she can take Josh to his daily radiation appointments and juggle all of the kids’ care and activities. It is possible that she may need to take a leave of absence, and with it reduced pay, to care for Josh during treatment.

 

Over the next few months, Stirling and Josh will have many expenses, including gas bills, medical bills, treatment co-pays, childcare expenses, and any medical equipment or home adjustments that may be required to provide a safe home for Josh as he undergoes treatment. The family has connected with the Semper Fi & America’s Fund to cover a few of the expenses related to the treatment and are lucky enough to be in contact with other gracious foundations that support wounded warriors.

 

Josh and Stirling appreciate any kind of love or support that you can offer at this time. If you are the praying type, send them up. If you are the drinking type, raise a glass to Josh until the next time you can share one with him face to face. Mostly, please keep the Christys close to your heart, and send them all of your positive thoughts for his healing and recovery. Any donations to this site will go directly to Josh and Stirling to help with their expenses. Thank you, thank you!

 

About Josh: Josh’s family’s roots are in Florida/Georgia, but he spent most of his childhood growing up in the Middle East with his brother, Travis, and his parents, Jim and Becky, who were teachers abroad. This unique life experience likely led Josh to pursue his ultimate career path, protecting our freedom around the world. Currently, Josh is a Senior Chief Petty Officer with 16 years of service. He has always planned to tack another 10 years onto that.

 

He met Stirling in San Diego in 2009. They were married in Stirling’s home state of Colorado in 2015. They welcomed their first son, Jack (age 4), in September 2018 and Murphy (age 2) in 2020. Josh stepped up to the role of “Dad” and loves spending time with the boys and family in the backyard, at the beach, and at the Distillery he launched in 2018 - Deaf Shepherd.

 

Since Josh is approaching his 20-year mark in the military, he has begun planning for his life after service. He became an expert at distilling rum and whiskey and partnered with local brewers and distillers to begin bottling and distributing his Deaf Shepherd spirits. He dreams of one day retiring on some acreage in Georgia, Florida or Colorado with his wife, kids and dogs. He can also see himself selling his rum out of a tiki bar on some beach somewhere.

I created this GoFundMe Page in support of my husband’s sister, Stirling, and my brother-in-law, Josh Christy. - Tressie