Recovering From the Unexpected

How an escalated headache revealed a brain mass.

Hello, I’m Johnathan, and I want to share my story in the hope that it might provide comfort, assistance, or guidance to someone else facing a similar journey. When I was diagnosed with glioblastoma (GBM), I scoured the internet for stories of hope, but found mostly negativity and ominous predictions. I knew there were survivors out there, and each person’s journey with GBM is unique.

I was born in the small town of Arcata, California and grew up in a loving family. I realized I was different at a young age and came out as gay at 16. Overcoming the challenges of growing up in a small town, I left at 18 and eventually settled in Sacramento at the age of 37. I’ve been happily married to my husband, Ernest, for the past 10 years. We share our lives with a furry friend, love to travel, enjoy Disneyland, and maintain close ties with our families. Our health struggles have been typical—Ernest is diabetic, and I have high blood pressure, but nothing out of the ordinary, or so we thought.

In the emergency room, I underwent a series of tests—EKG, CAT scan, blood tests, and a chest X-ray. The nurse, concerned about my symptoms, hurried me through the process. After completing the tests, I was asked to wait in the waiting room. An hour later, a nurse asked me to come back alone, and her ominous tone hinted at something serious. In the examination room, the doctor delivered the devastating news—there was a walnut-sized mass on my brain. I was being referred to another facility and an ambulance would be arriving soon.

As those words sank in, a sense of dread enveloped me. The reality of facing a life-altering diagnosis hit hard, and I turned to my husband. Tears welled up in his eyes as we grappled with the news. The ER doctor’s words echoed in my mind, and the looming uncertainty of the future left us in silent contemplation. My mom and sister arrived, offering comfort and reassurance, but the weight of the diagnosis hung heavily in the room, and tears flowed freely.

The eight-hour surgery proved to be an intense experience for both me and my family, but the outcome was nothing short of remarkable. All the tumors were successfully removed, though, let us be real, it is never truly “all” gone. And so begins the next phase of the journey, with all of us on this path together. I will be unfolding more about this unexpected adventure on my personal blog, sharing the peaks and valleys, and perhaps discovering a glimmer of hope amid the uncertainties.

Whether you are a patient, survivor, caregiver, or loved one touched by cancer, your story can have an enormous impact. You can provide hope and inspiration to someone recently diagnosed with cancer or a patient undergoing therapy.