For those of you who are lucky enough to know my dad, you know that he is one to always make sure you are happy, smiling, and laughing. He is selfless, resilient, perseverent, and has the kindest heart. I am confident that if you have met him, then you already know the positive impact that he tends to have on people.

My dad has fought two hard battles with Hairy Cell Leukemia, but this time around it wasn’t his cancer that came back. Instead, a tumor (acoustic neuroma) began growing inside of his ear canal. The tumor grew rapidly and was obstructing the flow of cerebrospinal fluid and endangering his brain stem. In order to ensure the situation wouldn’t worsen, he underwent brain surgery at Stanford Medical Center on October 26. The surgery lasted over 10 hours and while most of the tumor has been removed, he is now facing a long road to recovery.

His body is trying to adapt to the impact the surgery has had on his nerves that were affected by the tumor. These nerves include the facial nerve, cochlear nerve, and balance nerve. He will have to retrain his brain to walk again, learning to compensate for the loss of the balance nerve, which was removed during surgery. Additionally, the hearing in his right ear is unable to be restored and he will have continuous ringing in the right ear that cannot be resolved.

Many of our friends are familiar with my family’s constant medical battles. And, as many of you know yourselves, medical coverage is not what we would call ‘affordable’. My family is still paying medical bills from cancer treatments, doctor’s visits, and ongoing iron infusions, not to mention regular medications and other recurring costs. This major operation, including the costs of pre-operation visits to Stanford Medical Center and hotel stays (as Stanford Housing was unavailable due to COVID), is a massive addition to that financial burden.