Becky’s Story

Site created on February 18, 2021


Welcome to our CaringBridge website. We are using it to keep family and friends updated in one place. We appreciate your support and words of hope and encouragement. Feel free to share this site with whomever you think might be interested. Thank you for visiting.

As most of you know, I was diagnosed with a benign epidermoid brain tumor in 2009 and had 2 subsequent surgeries (2009,2013). While the tumor is benign, it regrows and takes up space in my skull, putting pressure on important structures, with the potential to cause irreparable damage. My follow up MRI last Sept showed growth. and I was beginning to have headaches again. 

My second surgery left me with some facial and hearing deficits, so after that I researched who would be the best surgeon if I ever needed surgery again. (Which I was determined that I wouldn’t ).  That search lead me to Dr Takanori Fukushima at Duke and WakeMed in Raleigh NC. Every surgery has risks and this one risks further damage to cranial nerves, affecting facial movements, vision, balance and left sided strength. 

My upcoming surgery is at WakeMed on Tuesday, March 9th. Marsh and I have rented an AirBNB in Raleigh for 10 days, then We have rented an apartment in Charlotte so we can be nearer medical care and good restaurants while I convalesce. ;)

Please keep me in your prayers for a successful surgery, wise, gentle handed doctors and strength for my family. I think this is harder on them than it is me.   xoxo



Newest Update

Journal entry by Becky Benson

Hello everyone. It’s way past due for me to bring you up to date. My last entry(end of March) I seemed to be recovering well. Somewhere between then and Masters week, I started vomiting for no reason and was unable eat or drink very much. Things went downhill from that over the next 2 months with confusion and being extremely tired. Honestly, I dont remember very much of this time at all. Marsh, Casey and Scott took me back and forth to the ER and stayed with me thru several hospital admissions. We (us and the doctors) still don’t know how everything fits together, but we think I had at least 2 problems. I’ve had fever blisters since I was a child, but somehow we think the original brain surgery stirred things up and I had a Herpes Simplex 1 encephalitis (HSV). Most people don’t survive that. Secondly, I ended up with Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus (where the cerebral spinal fluid doesn’t circulate as it should). The backed up fluid causes increased pressure in the brain. I had to get a VP shunt inserted to take care of that. 
I have been out of the hospital for about 2 weeks now, recovering in Charlotte. With the help of my family, doctors, physical therapy and medicines I think I have turned the corner and am making progress back to normality. 
I so appreciate everyone checking in through my family and the cards and texts. So sorry we haven’t been able to keep up with Caring Bridge. During the worst part, things were changing so rapidly and I was of no help. (In fact, I have heard I was quite a bad patient 🤦🏻‍♀️) 
I’ve had to promise to be good from now on. 😉
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