Living with brain cancer
Little White Dot (3/3/23) On January 31st, I had an MRI that revealed what looked like a little white dot. This spot was seen on scans used with contrast, meaning something was going on there that involved blood. The worst-case scenario was that this spot was an area of “enhancing tumor,” or tumor recruiting my …
I never thought I would make it to my 30th birthday, but here I am! I don’t mean for this to be a grandiose statement, it’s simply fact. Over the past 18 years since I was diagnosed at the age of 12, I have gone through my first diagnosis followed by surgery, months in the …
Continue reading "On Turning 30 Years Old: Living a life guided by my values"
On Monday, June 4th I had my neurooncology appointment at UCSF. Since being discharged from the hospital, my days have been pretty smooth: waking up, exercising a little, hitting an energy-wall, and relaxing. I mean how often do you get an excuse to binge-watch Netflix guilt free? As Monday approached though, I could feel the anxiety creeping throughout my body. It was the day I'd receive my biopsy results from the surgery.
Whenever I have trouble falling asleep, I focus in to that day on the river. Sitting in my kayak, I paddled as slow as possible, hoping that this moment would never end. I took every second I could to soak in the beauty around me: The tranquil flow of the Snake River, the ascending dry …
On November 5th, 2014, I left Indonesia for what was supposed to be a 3-week Thanksgiving vacation. As most of you know, this vacation turned into a rollercoaster of treatments and recovery for my recurrent brain tumor. Now, two years later, I write this on November 5th, 2016 during my first night in Sukadana, Kalimantan …
It is no understatement to say that the Affordable Care Act (ACA) helped save my life. Since I was diagnosed with brain cancer at the age of 12, I have been an insurance liability. Living with cancer for more than half my life, I clearly fall into the category of someone with a “pre-existing condition.” …
Continue reading "ACT NOW – Support the Affordable Care Act"
Over 300 stories. 300 unique experiences. Patients, survivors, family, friends...everyone in some way had a connection to the devastation caused by brain tumors. To sit in a room with these 300 people was humbling because they represented a web of countless others whose lives have been impacted by a brain tumor. Last week, I was in …
Continue reading "Who I ride for…Please Support the 2016 Boston Brain Tumor Ride"
Click HERE to join my team for the 2016 Boston Brain Tumor Ride! Yesterday I went to Dana Farber for my latest MRI scan. During the weeks leading up to the scan I was incredibly nervous. I have spent the past 3 months studying for the MCAT and preparing to apply for medical school. I …
Continue reading "Why I Ride…Please join and support the 2016 Boston Brain Tumor Ride!"
The following post may seem rather all over the place since it was written while all of these thoughts were swirling around my head. I contemplated rewriting a more refined summary of what you’ll read below, but ultimately I decided that posting the raw version reveals more about what going through this experience is actually …
For the last day of May and Brain Tumor Awareness Month, I wanted to share my speech I gave at the Boston Brain Tumor Ride 2 weeks ago. Thank you again to everyone who made the ride such a memorable day. Here is the VIDEO And here is the text: "Hello Everyone, I’m honored to …
Jeremy's Journey 