Tom Carper Brain Tumor Fund Raiser
Donation protected
In August of 2013, Tom was diagnosed with a diffulsely infiltrating oligodendroglioma brain tumor. This particular type of tumor is rare. The original mass of the tumor was comparable to the size of a grapefruit. We consulted with local neurosurgeons at that time and none were willing to perform surgery due to the type of tumor and the location within the brain. U of M held a tumor board and we were referred to UCSF Medical Center to meet with Dr. Mitch Berger. Tom underwent an 8-hour awake craniotomy on October 29th of the same year. At that time, they were able to remove over 90% of the tumor. The remaining tumor resides in the "eloquent" portion of the brain where it is risky to proceed due to potential complications of losing speech, motor movements, etc. Tom did amazingly well and actually walked back to the hotel in San Francisco only two days after the procedure. Unfortunately, in December of 2013, he developed hydrocephalus and had to have a permanent VP shunt inserted to distribute the build-up of cranial fluid. While this was a major setback, Tom went back to work in February of 2014. The follow-on treatment was having MRIs every three months to ensure the tumor remained stable. In March of 2015, Dr. Berger noted a "slight" enhancement but did not see anything warranting a change in course. In August of this year, we learned that the MRI results from July were showing a growth in the portion of the brain in which the tumor could not be fully removed. While the growth is considered "slow", it is also in a very critical portion of the brain and must be removed. The follow-on treatment this time will be more aggressive to include radiation and possible chemotherapy. The full scope of aftercare will be determined once a biopsy is conducted during the surgery. Tom is amazingly strong and optimistic which makes a world of difference in my opinion. The hardest part is leaving our children for a couple weeks. Tom and his son Caden are very close and the children had a hard time the last time we went away. I set up this fund raiser to help with medical costs associated with not only the surgery, but also the additional treatments post-surgery.
Organizer
Crystal Carper
Organizer
Temperance, MI
