Maureen's (Mo) oligodendroglioma diagnosis occurred 5 weeks after she gave birth to her first and only baby. When Mo's doctor told her she had Oligodendroglioma- she was told while it is brain cancer, she should consider herself lucky because she didn’t have the WORST type of brain cancer. But as a new mom to an infant, she didn’t feel lucky at all. The standard of care treatment that has not changed for the past 20 years is to “debulk” the tumor with surgery, then follow with radiation and chemo. None of these ideal paths for a woman trying to work and care for her family.

When her daughter was 2 months old, 5 days after Mo's 35th birthday, she had brain surgery. She woke up unable to move her left side and needed extensive rehabilitation. Mo still has many weaknesses on her left side and works hard in Physical and Occupational Therapy, continually trying to get stronger. She hopes that keeping a positive outlook will help effect a positive outcome. Even after treatment, Oligo patients face a road of recurrences, multiple surgeries, more chemo, strokes, loss of physical and mental abilities, personality changes, basically losing pieces of themselves along the way as they try to outrun this rare cancer that eventually catches all up to them, which is why funding for research is SO essential.

Mo thinks having her daughter when she did, made her more determined than she ever knew she could be; wanting to find a way to advocate and become a loud voice to help raise awareness and funds to advance research so that oligo patients’ stories have a chance to unfold in a more hopeful way and possibly even find a cure. She is fighting hard to live a simple, happy life with her sweet little family.