It is hard for such self sufficient people to say they need help, but brain cancer can change that.  My husband Seth was recently diagnosed with an Anaplastic Astrocytoma. In short, this is a stage three malignant brain tumor.  On June 15th, Seth was found at home having a seizure. This was the first sign of something significantly wrong.  Before this happened Seth was always trying to fix a constant headache, drowsiness, and fatigue. These all are common symptoms of, say, a food allergy or a virus, but nothing seemed to help those symptoms.   After the seizure,  he had a series of MRI's, EEG's, a biopsy, and  many visits with neurologists at OHSU. After three months of tests we now know the problem is a tumor, one that is very rare and is cancerous. On October 20th, Seth goes in for an operation on the brain called a retraction. The  neurologist will attempt to remove as much of the tumor as he can. Six  weeks after the surgery Seth will start chemo and radiation.

Seth is the father of two beautiful children. Sawyer will be 3 in Novemeber and our baby, Finn, is 6 months old.  He is a hands on daddy who loves his children and is doing everything he can to continue that relationship despite this serious illness. He also is an amazing husband who strives everyday to make sure that I am doing ok.  As a family we are hopeful and doing our best to stay positive in this difficult time. I am a kindergarten teacher in the Corvallis School District and I have had to take a leave to half-time in order to care for Seth.   Changing to half time caused me to lose my covered medical insurance, so now I am purchasing the school district insurance. Previous to a diagnosis of brain cancer Seth worked at Umpqua Bank.  He will not be able to return to work for a minimum of six weeks.
We are going to need help with medical bills and living expenses. We are grateful for our friends, family, and strangers who have been helping us with meals, child care, bills and emotional support.