Kathy’s Story

Site created on October 22, 2022

Welcome to our CaringBridge website. We will be using it to keep family and friends updated in one place. We appreciate your support and words of hope and encouragement! 

On Thursday, October 20, Kathy went to the emergency room for a sudden spike in blood pressure. She had been feeling a bit off for a few weeks. They immediately started running some tests and discovered a 5 cm mass on her brain. We met with a neurosurgeon who explained that the mass looked “ominous”, and that it needed to come out as soon as possible. It was determined that the soonest she could have surgery would be Wednesday, October 26th, because she had taken aspirin earlier that day.

The neurosurgeon took a lot of time explaining the possibilities and next steps. He told us we would not know what we are dealing with until the surgery. They let her come home on Friday with the instructions not to work nor drive. She is currently scheduled for a craniotomy on Wednesday, October 26 at St. Luke’s Hospital.

From the second the mass was discovered, her wonderful, bulldog (mom's words) sister began the process of calling other surgeons, hospitals, and colleagues to get a second opinion. She spoke with numerous doctors only to be told that they were booking into 2023. If you know her, you know that she does not give up easily. It is because of her efforts that we are exploring other options with a doctor at Barnes Hospital.

We learned today that the primary site IS in the brain and that she has a glioblastoma. We will update this site as we have more information to share. While she is currently scheduled for surgery on Wednesday, we will continue to explore options with another doctor early this week. There is a possibility that the date of the surgery will change.

Please keep us in your prayers and spread the word about this site. We are grateful for the outpouring of love and support she has been receiving.

Newest Update

Journal entry by larry murphy

Kathy is out of surgery and it went well. They opened the incision once again, cleaned everything out, removed more bone, put in a drain and closed her up. Dr. Kim and Dr. Chi worked together this time. She will be at Barnes until cultures are back and they determine if she will have iv antibiotics at home. They won’t do further surgery for at least 1.5 months to put in a plate or a more extensive surgery would be a tissue transplant which decisions will be made after next mri in december. She has a headache and is mostly out of it today but hopefully she sleeps peacefully. Thanks for all the prayers. Cher
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