After hearing those frightening words that your child has a brain tumor, it is hard to imagine anyone being able to focus on what the doctor is saying from that point on.

After Rory passed away in 1998, Ross and Mindy Deutsch decided to form the Rory David Deutsch Foundation with the goal of funding medical research and promoting programs to elevate awareness about pediatric brain tumors. More importantly they saw the need to offer families support and ways to share the latest information on a variety of childhood diseases touching the lives of so many families.

A family facing the thought of their child undergoing brain tumor surgery may find some comfort once they understand the course of action the doctor lays out for them.

Preparing for surgery:

At some point in the days leading up to the surgery, parents are encouraged to discuss what is going to happen in an “age-appropriate” way, regardless of how young the child may be.

A child’s imagination can be fueled with the wrong information exchanged between family members, thereby burdening the child with more frightening prospects.

It is best to encourage the child to ask his own questions with the team of doctors, be it the neuro surgeon or anesthesiologist; ask for the hospital’s ‘Child Life Specialist’ or social worker to help you through this process.

After the brain tumor surgery, it is important to realize that the brain can actually swell in size, which means the child’s symptoms before brain tumor surgery may show signs of being “temporarily worse than before.”

Contact us to learn more the mission of Rory David Deutsch Foundation , and the impact it has on keeping families informed about the latest advancements in pediatric brain tumor research. Contributions can easily be made from the website.

 

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