SOUTHAVEN, Miss. — Advances in technology are making treatments for things as serious as brain tumors easier and safer for patients in the Mid-South.
Stephanie Weaver, a level two ICU nurse at Baptist-Desoto, was diagnosed with a large, slow growing brain tumor in 2015.
Surgeons were able to remove 80 percent of the tumor, but she had to undergo five weeks of radiation and then chemotherapy to get rid of the rest.
Radiation oncologists with Baptist said tools like the linear accelerator allow them to target tumors with greater precision without hurting the patient.
“We can treat the cancer and lower the initial dose to structures around it –to the eyes, optic nerves because of the precision and it’s a quicker treatment than it used to be,” said Dr. Omar Ghandour
Weaver continued to work in the ICU while she was receiving treatments.
“I would l come in in the morning work and then clock out and come down and have my treatment clock back in again and go back to work,” said Weaver.
It’s been more than year since Weaver’s surgery and she is now cancer free.
Her advice to others is to let doctors know what is going on with your body.
Weaver said she may have symptoms for years like headaches and fatigue that she ignored.