**Update is at the bottom!!**

My mom, Stephanie Pavlich, has worked for Austintown Schools for 12 years as an IT Technician, specially supporting the Food Services Department.

In early February 2024, Mom started experiencing colorful floaters spinning in her right eye, which then turned into blurry peripheral vision in the same eye.

These episodes became almost daily, lasting from 1 minute to an hour, and persisted for several months. After a battery of tests with the eye doctor, they confirmed her retina and eyes were physically okay and diagnosed her with occular migraines.

Within a few weeks, she began experiencing pain above her left eye, with or without the colorful floaters, and blurry peripheral vision. Her peripheral vision got worse with no improvements.

In late March, she saw her family doctor who immediately ordered an MRI, as he knew these symptoms were not normal for her.

On April 5, 2024, she had an MRI and found that she had a 2.5-inch brain tumor on her occipital lobe. That weekend was the worst pain and vision loss she had experienced to date. She went directly to the Cleveland Clinic on Monday, April 8, 2024.

The full workup began. Teams of doctors were looking for answers. She previously had Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Cancer in 2015, but they believed this occurrence is a new case of cancer, unrelated to her previous lymphoma.

They ordered lumbar punctures, blood work, MRIs, CT scans, ultrasounds, and chest X-rays. They did another set of 5 MRIs and 2 CT Scans, which showed a large amount of swelling moving into the brain. The surgeon decided to remove the brain tumor ASAP. The swelling was so bad they started her on steroids to calm the swelling so they could go in and remove the tumor.

On Friday, April 12, 2024, she underwent a 6-hour brain surgery, where they drilled open the back of her head and removed the entire tumor. She woke up with 17 staples down the back of her head. With myself, my sister Julie, and her sister Sue by her bed, she was finally out of pain.

After the surgery was complete, we were informed that the tumor was cancer: Adenocarcinoma of the brain. This is not the main site but a metastasis of cancer from somewhere else in her body. All the scans show no obvious primary site at this time.

The chemo oncology doctor has sent the tumor for molecular testing to help identify what type of cancer it could be and to help identify any chemotherapy that she may need in the near future.

Mom is currently undergoing Gamma Knife Radiation to the brain at the Cleveland Clinic on the resection site of the tumor along with a few additional spots on her brain. This treatment was necessary to lessen the reoccurrence rate of her brain cancer, which was 50% without radiation.

Mom is unable to work at this time, and she has restrictions on lifting, bending over, and strenuous activity. As a very independent person, this is such a huge adjustment to her life.

She is doing occupational therapy to rebuild the peripheral vision in her right eye and physical therapy to rebuild her strength.

My mom is blessed to have supportive family, friends, and coworkers sending meals and prayers. Myself and my Aunt Susie are rotating taking off work to be with mom at her appointments and treatments.

Mom is thankful for all the prayers and love being sent her way and she gives thanks to the Lord Jesus Christ for his love through all things.

We don’t know at this time what the future will be as far as chemotherapy treatment or prognosis. She wishes to stay independent, go back to work, and continue her journey through life. She feels like she has lived her best life the last several years and she hopes that continues.

Money really means nothing if you don’t have good health. (This fundraiser is to help with current and upcoming medical costs associated to her diagnosis.)

So Eat the Cake, Drink the Drink, and Enjoy Life.

Thank you for any and all support and if you would be so kind to share.