That is a very sad story.  I hope that you got to spend some quality time with your father before he really lost his ability to function.

But thank you for sharing this. And I think a lot of us have Sen. Kennedy on our minds.

Sorry you had to relive the trauma and I hope sharing it has helped some. I saw a doctor being interviewed on TV who frankly stated this type of thing usually has a poor prognosis. My prayers go out to Sen. Kennedy.

Thanks for sharing, dude. All most of us (like me) know of you is generally a guy who goes around troll-rating people. But it's things like this that give you depth and make it hard, and nigh on impossible, to dehumanize you as another Clinton diehard, and makes everyone realize you're a real person with real drives, feelings, etc.

My daughter and I will keep you in our prayers.

recced

I'm sorry your father didn't survive.  My husband was diagnosed with a brain tumor just before we were married.  It was about the size of a soda can and growing on the hearing nerve.  We discovered it when his face became paralyzed.  MRI'S were new then too.  Within a week we were flying across country to Shands Hospital in Florida - to their brand new MRI and teaching hospital.  12 hours of surgery later the tumor was removed.  It wasn't cancerous, and the doctor got all of it (Dr. Rhoton - I still remember him.  He saved my husbands life).

There's still some paralysis and he lost hearing in one ear - but he lived and the tumor didn't grow back (we were told 85% of them did).  The real changes were to his personality, unfortunately.  I ended up married to a stranger.  The brain is a very delicate thing.  I wish Teddy Kennedy well.

This is a heartbreaking story.  I'm very sorry to hear about your father.  As another poster said, the personality changes are incredibly difficult to deal with.  One of my friends just passed away last year from a brain tumor, and between the cancer and the morphine she was a completely different person in the weeks before she passed.

Thanks for sharing your story.

What a heartbreaking tragedy, zerosumgame. It's such a mystery what causes these types of tumors and the damage they inflict. There has to be a way to diagnose and treat them in the formative stage before they become inoperable. We can't give up hope. It's yet another reason why we need a candidate who won't settle for anything less than UNIVERSAL health care, so everyone can obtain the treatment they need and deserve.

I know what a brain tumor can do.

I had a very good friend die of cancer 2 years ago. He fought it bravely as it spread through his entire body and finally to his brain. For the weeks before he passed on, he wasn't the person he used to be and it was painful and gut-wrenching to watch.

I'll admit to having an impression of you not very different from that of ragekage above. It really does help to know the human side of someone that you otherwise have only viewed as an adversary. I hope you've found peace.

Peace.