Tia’s Brain Surgery Expenses

My baby sister Tia is going to have her head cracked into and your support would really help her at a time like this.
Please pass this along even if donating isn't an option.



At only 21 years old she will be having brain surgery to remove a cyst that has grown into her pineal gland.  Asking for help isn’t easy for anyone, especially Tia, so I wanted to do the asking for her.  

Tia needs your help and best wishes for her journey to Houston Texas to have this thing removed.

About eight months ago she began experiencing eye pressure, eye droop, vertigo, cognitive decline, memory loss, visual snow and now she can't stop dropping anything and everything. These symptoms have caused many problems in her daily life especially her ability to work.  Finally a doctor ordered an MRI where we learned of a cyst like tumor, located in the center of her brain, on her pineal gland.  Every specialist she had seen after told her that it was an incidental finding and that they do not cause symptoms. They said even if it was symptomamatic that surgery would be extremely complicated and that a cyst is unlikely to grow. 

Now fast forward a few months later and her symptoms have worsened, leading to another emergency MRI showing the cyst has grown. This cyst has left her unable to work and quite concerned for her future quality of life.

Because of the complexity of removing a cyst located in the center of the brain Tia's search for a competent surgeon led to Dr. Dong Kim in Houston Texas. He has lead research on these Pineal Gland Cyst and has removed over 300+ of them. After her consultation with him, confirming her cyst is symptomatic, she has decided to have it removed before it is too late.

Dr. Kim will be using the keyhole method in the back of her skull, between her two hemispheres, to remove Tia's  Cyst along with her whole pineal gland. After the surgery she will need to recover in Houston for multiple weeks before being allowed to fly home to Washington State.

We are asking that people who know Tia and/or people that know how difficult it is to recover from such a life changing event donate or send best wishes in her direction.

We will use these precious resources to help with the travel costs, insurance deductibles and to secure a place to recover after the surgery. 

Tia will have the surgery beginning of May.  She'll be released from the hospital after a few days and have several follow up appointments for the next weeks before she can travel back home to us.  During her time away from home, she'd love to hear from you.  Whether it be a friend, coworker or fellow brain tumor survivor.

Thank you for helping Tia.

She is the shining star of our family; always there for others, always optimistic and always true to herself. 


TIA'S PINEAL CYST SYMPTOMS


Diplopia (double vision) ✓
Visual Snow ✓
Blurred vision ✓
Flashing Lights ✓
Coloured or black floating spots ✓
Pain looking upward✓
Sensitivity to light ✓
Pressure & Pain behind the eyes ✓
Pain in eyes ✓
Eye Strain ✓
Feeling of rubber band around the head ✓
Pressure in forehead ✓
Pressure in head ✓
Vertigo ✓
Memory problems/brain fog ✓
Depression/anxiety/mood swings ✓
Jaw pain ✓
Ringing sounds ✓
Sensitivity to sounds ✓
Fatigue ✓
Nausea ✓
Balance & co-ordination issues (gait) ✓