Share Your Story
Your story is powerful and can help raise awareness and support for others facing similar challenges. By sharing your experience, you bring hope to others and show them that they are not alone.
Story submissions should be fewer than 1,000 words. We encourage you to focus on how having a brain tumor has impacted your life or what you want others to understand about brain tumors. Fields marked with an asterisk (*) are required.
Patient & Caregiver Stories
Story Submissions Disclaimer
The stories featured on this page are submitted by patients, caregivers, and families who have chosen to share their personal experiences. These stories reflect the individual perspectives and opinions of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views, beliefs, or policies of the American Brain Tumor Association (ABTA).
The ABTA does not independently verify the details of these stories and cannot guarantee their accuracy or completeness. The information shared in these stories should not be considered as medical advice or a substitute for professional consultation with qualified healthcare providers.
By reading or submitting content to this page, you acknowledge and agree that the ABTA is not responsible for any decisions or actions taken based on the information provided in these stories.
If you have concerns about any content on this page, please contact us at [email protected]
Honoring Volunteer Appreciation Month: A Survivor’s Perspective on Shaping Brain Tumor Research
During Volunteer Appreciation Month, the American Brain Tumor Association (ABTA) is proud to recognize Aisha Khalid, a dedicated volunteer Patient Advocate and Research Grant Reviewer whose lived experience as a […]
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Learning to Live Again After Acoustic Neuroma Surgery
by Ronald Phelps I had surgery to remove an acoustic neuroma, also known as a vestibular schwannoma. The tumor was benign, and the surgery itself went well. For that, I […]
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From Young Athlete to Childhood Brain Tumor Survivor
by Ayis Andreas Caperonis My name is Ayis, and my life changed when I was thirteen and a half years old. I grew up in a very athletic family. My […]
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A Living Miracle: My Journey as a Brain Tumor Survivor
by Justin Kim I am a brain tumor survivor. I was diagnosed in 2002 and again in 2004. I have been in remission since 2005. That is the short version […]
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The Joyful Ordinary
by Madison McConnell My life flipped upside down and backwards on August 9, 2025. I went to the emergency room after a four-week migraine that had grown impossible to ignore. […]
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Three Years On: Choosing to Be the Outlier
by Keith Brady Here I am, just over three years down the track, still surviving a glioblastoma. A nasty bugger it is, or was. When I look back, my journey […]
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Defying the Odds: Living 28 Years After a Glioblastoma Diagnosis
by Larry Skigin It was 1997, and I was 31 years old when life changed in an instant. Out of the blue, I had a seizure. Just days later, doctors […]
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Fuel the Fight. Fund the Future.
Your Support Powers the Next Breakthrough in Brain Tumor Research As we approach the end of the year, we are reminded of the extraordinary power of community. A network of […]
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Fighting Glioblastoma with My Tribe
by Erika Butler My life changed forever on July 3, 2023, when I had a seizure and crashed into a house. The police assumed I was drunk, but a CT […]
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Fuel the Fight, Fund the Future.
When Beth Kassab first attended the ABTA’s National Conference in 2023, she was admittedly hesitant. Beth lost her husband to a brain tumor in 2022, after 16 years of marriage […]
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New Life
By: Kelsie Barry, Astrocytoma Survivor The morning I woke up in my new city of Las Vegas, I felt like I didn’t sleep for more than a couple of minutes.
Be Like Brad
By: Tia Mazzone, Caregiver Brad’s journey is an extraordinary one. In October 2022 he started having headaches mid-month. Due to the weather being smokey and dry conditions, his wife, Tia
Esther’s Story
October 3, 2021. My dear precious mother, Esther Stone, suffered a seizure which resulted in a Glioblastoma diagnosis. That’s the day my world shattered. Esther’s seizure happened after the regular