{"id":858172,"date":"2026-06-10T19:44:15","date_gmt":"2026-06-10T19:44:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/858172\/"},"modified":"2026-06-10T19:44:15","modified_gmt":"2026-06-10T19:44:15","slug":"3-time-skull-base-tumor-survivor-i-wish-id-started-treatment-at-ut-md-anderson","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/858172\/","title":{"rendered":"3-time skull base tumor survivor: \u2018I wish I\u2019d started treatment at UT\u00a0MD\u00a0Anderson\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

My first experience with cancer<\/a> was in December 2007, when I received an olfactory neuroblastoma<\/a> diagnosis after noticing a blockage in my nose. I was treated successfully for it near my home in Kansas with a combination of surgery<\/a> and chemoradiation<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Eleven years later, I developed a secondary cancer<\/a> in that same area called radiation-associated osteosarcoma.<\/a> This time, the cancer was in the bones around my left eye and sinuses. Again, I sought help locally and was treated successfully with chemotherapy<\/a> and another major surgery.<\/p>\n

At that point, I thought I was done with cancer. But in March 2020, I learned that the original cancer had recurred<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This time, the tumor was wrapped around my internal carotid artery, which is located deep inside the brain at the base of the skull<\/a>. It was considered too dangerous to remove through surgery. The sole chemotherapy regimen I tried in Kansas didn\u2019t work. My local doctors told me there was nothing more they could do.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s when I called UT MD Anderson.<\/p>\n

Side effects brought me to UT MD Anderson initially<\/b><\/p>\n

By that point, I\u2019d actually been a patient at UT MD Anderson for about six months. Until then, though, I\u2019d only received care there for a lingering\u00a0side effect<\/a>: peripheral neuropathy<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Once the neuropathy fully kicked in after chemotherapy, I couldn\u2019t hold a pen or a fork. I also had debilitating pain in my legs and feet.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

At UT MD Anderson, I went through 10 days of something called scrambler treatment<\/a> with anesthesiologist\/pain medicine specialist Dr. Salahadin Abdi<\/a>. It made a huge difference. I still have a little neuropathy left in my feet, but they\u2019re just kind of numb and tingly now instead of actively hurting. That\u2019s a big improvement.<\/p>\n

UT MD Anderson gave me hope and a treatment plan<\/b><\/p>\n

When I reached out to UT MD Anderson for help with an actual cancer diagnosis<\/a>, though, I didn\u2019t think there were any options left. I went to UT MD Anderson expecting to die. Instead, I left with hope and a plan.<\/p>\n

At UT MD Anderson, I met first with sarcoma medical oncologist Dr. Maria Zarzour<\/a>. She reviewed my records and scans and said that there were, in fact, other chemotherapy regimens available. I also met with head and neck surgeon Dr. Ehab Hanna<\/a>, but he agreed that the tumor was inoperable. So, he referred me to radiation oncologist Dr. Jack Phan<\/a> to discuss alternatives.<\/p>\n

Dr. Phan specializes in irradiating areas that have already been treated with radiation therapy. That is a tricky and very specialized field, so I was grateful for his expertise. I trusted him when he recommended stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT)<\/a>, especially after Dr. Zarzour reassured me, \u201cWe\u2019ve got this.\u201d<\/p>\n

My skull base tumor recurrence treatment<\/b><\/p>\n

I had the first two rounds of chemotherapy at UT MD Anderson, followed by the SBRT treatments. Then I went home and had the last four rounds of chemotherapy there, under the close supervision of my care team at UT MD Anderson.<\/p>\n

I still have some side effects from my original treatments. But I\u2019ve shown no evidence of disease<\/a> since August 2020.<\/p>\n

Today, I\u2019m just enjoying life with my wife and our kids. I\u2019ve been able to return to work as a certified registered nurse anesthetist, too. And, I\u2019ve watched all three children graduate from high school \u2014 the youngest one just last month. That\u2019s something I never thought I\u2019d be able to do. So, it\u2019s been pretty special.<\/p>\n

I really never thought I\u2019d live to see this day. I worried for years that the cancer would come back<\/a> and I\u2019d be out of options. Now, I wish I\u2019d started all my treatment at UT MD Anderson. If I had, maybe I wouldn\u2019t have had to endure the secondary cancer or the recurrence. That\u2019s why I tell everybody now to go to UT MD Anderson first.<\/p>\n

Request an appointment at\u202fUT\u202fMD Anderson online<\/b><\/a>\u202for call 1-877-632-6789.<\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"My first experience with cancer was in December 2007, when I received an olfactory neuroblastoma diagnosis after noticing…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":858173,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5130],"tags":[37967,138220,350167,4345,47762,269694,18301,350169,350168,3314,358,3187],"class_list":["post-858172","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-houston","tag-caregivers","tag-family-friends","tag-head-and-neck","tag-houston","tag-neuropathy","tag-patient-caregiver-stories","tag-patients","tag-skull-base-tumors","tag-stereotactic-body-radiation-therapy","tag-survivors","tag-texas","tag-tx"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116727530883845360","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/858172","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=858172"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/858172\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/858173"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=858172"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=858172"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=858172"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}