Our mom, Rosemarie, had been experiencing weakness and frequent falls since mid-February, and even broke two toes and sprained her ankle on one of those occasions. She was not complaining of dizziness, but rather that her muscles felt weak. She went to appointment after appointment to find out what was going on with her body. They ordered images and ran tests, but due to a series of unfortunate events and medical negligence, our mom was not informed about the mass that was found on her brain in an MRI scan done on March 6th until March 18th. We called her primary care physician and neurologist over 50 times to have them review her scan results, to no avail. When her PCP finally reviewed her brain scan, she was told "not to worry" and to wait for a follow up appointment that was scheduled with her neurologist on the 27th of March.

      On March 20, 2020, we took her to the emergency room at ORMC due to a sudden and significant decrease in her ability to use her right arm and leg. She was unable to express herself without crying or laughing and needed the assistance of 3 people to stand up. With the information of the existing brain mass, more images were taken in the ED and our mom was admitted quickly. Within hours, she was scheduled to see a neurosurgeon. The surgeon was convinced the mass was a malignant tumor that needed to be removed or Rose's condition would get worse. Terrified of the sudden changes in her body, Rose decided to go ahead with the recommended craniotomy to find out what type of tumor was growing and how to treat it. She made it through surgery and immediate recovery very well. On March 28th, Rosemarie was officially diagnosed with a Grade 4 Glioblastoma. These are also known as GBM's, a type of brain tumor considered to be extremely aggressive, and one that currently has no cure. The treatment recommended includes both radiation and chemotherapy several times a week. We pray that this treatment will help her gain or maintain her current quality of life as well as lengthen her time with us.

      At the moment, our mom is working diligently everyday within ORMC's inpatient Neuro Rehab to regain motion in her right side, as well as, regain the ability to express herself with words. Currently, she has been showing slow and steady improvement, occasionally using full sentences and expressing her needs verbally. However, the journey back to where she was prior to surgery is a long one. At the moment, Rose has no movement in her right leg or right arm. She is wheelchair bound and needs assistance with all activities of daily living: showering, toileting, dressing, and getting into bed.

     As you can imagine, her medical needs are huge with pending treatments and transportation. In addition, we currently live in a town home with all showers and bedrooms upstairs. We do not have the proper equipment to meet her immediate and long-term needs once she is home. It is our hope to convert the downstairs bathroom into an ADA approved space where our mom can shower, toilet, and brush her teeth. The funding provided through this fundraiser would help us provide her with this bathroom, adjustable bed, and other supplies not covered through insurance. Rosemarie will continue to have increasing needs as her treatment progresses.

We understand the enormous burden of the pandemic situation and we, ourselves, are trying our best to navigate an unimaginable situation in the middle of an impossible situation. We ask for your continued love and prayers during this time and if you cannot give now, please consider it in the future.