萝莉社

Hope Ray is passionate about children, so much that she鈥檚 been taking courses in early childhood education to become a preschool teacher.

She desires the classroom setting 鈥� a world filled with colors, shapes, numbers and other tools youngsters need during their formative years. Hope livens up when talking about her educational dreams. What makes those dreams even more noteworthy is the fact that they were at risk of being suddenly snatched away.

Hope, a 22-year-old Valdosta, Georgia, resident, was diagnosed with a brain tumor last year, when she was pregnant with her second child. But thanks to a successful high-risk operation at , Hope has a new lease on life, along with a healthy baby girl to enjoy.

Unexplainable pain

Hope and her husband, Kyle, live on Moody Air Force Base, where he works as a military police officer and she stays home to take care of their two daughters 鈥� Ellyanna, who鈥檚 almost 2, and Emmylyn, who was born in January.

Flash back to June 2013. Hope, two months pregnant with Emmylyn (鈥淓mmy鈥�), began experiencing severe headaches. Nonstop throbbing and pain became part of her daily experience. She felt ill all the time. Contrary to what her doctor said, she believed those effects weren鈥檛 just pregnancy-related.

鈥淚 just had this feeling something wasn鈥檛 right,鈥� she said.

Hope, who鈥檚 been blind in her right eye since birth, started to lose vision in the left eye. A neurologist determined that her optic nerve was swollen. All the while, the headaches intensified. The pain was excruciating. She said it felt like somebody was inside her skull squeezing her brain.

An MRI in September revealed that Hope had a grape-sized tumor in the middle of her brain. She was about five months pregnant at the time.

Four medical centers in South Georgia and North Florida wouldn鈥檛 operate on Hope because of the high-risk nature of the procedure. She was referred to 萝莉社 Jacksonville, where neurosurgeon , removed the tumor less than a week after the diagnosis.

A precise operation

Tavanaiepour, a University of Florida assistant professor and associate chair of neurosurgery, said the benign tumor was inhibiting the circulation of fluid in the brain. The buildup of fluid caused the pressure and constant pain Hope was feeling, as well as the left eye vision problems.

He said the tumor鈥檚 location, not its size, was an issue. It was in the center of the brain, in the third ventricle, which Tavanaiepour said is one of the deepest areas a neurosurgeon can probe. He believes she was likely born with the tumor.

鈥淣ormally, we would wait until her baby is born and then operate,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut in this case, the pressure in her head was getting dangerously high and her vision was deteriorating. Also, operating then would allow her to have a safe delivery.鈥�

After making an incision on the top of Hope鈥檚 head, Tavanaiepour used neuronavigation (think GPS for the brain) technology, an operating microscope and state-of-the-art micro-instruments to operate. The tumor, also defined as a colloid cyst, was stuck to a vein. He had to proceed with extreme caution and precision because a slight move in any direction could have affected Hope鈥檚 memory, caused a stroke or even rendered her brain dead.

鈥淭here was no room for error,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e were fighting for two lives.鈥�

The operation, which took about seven hours, concluded without any complications.

A few weeks later, Tavanaiepour performed a second operation to install a permanent shunt to drain fluid that continues to build up. The shunt takes the fluid from the brain down to Hope鈥檚 chest, where it鈥檚 absorbed and emptied into her body. Thoracic surgeons at 萝莉社 Jacksonville assisted with that procedure.

鈥淚t was scary,鈥� Kyle said, recalling the operations his wife had to undergo. 鈥淲e didn鈥檛 know what to expect.鈥�

Welcoming Emmy

After undergoing two successful operations, Hope and Kyle could focus solely on the pregnancy. They returned to 萝莉社 Jacksonville, where Hope gave birth to Emmy via C-section in late January. That option was taken because the pushing required during a conventional delivery would have put too much pressure on Hope鈥檚 head.

A worst-case scenario is that Hope would have gone into a coma and died. Emmy would have been at risk, too. However, the C-section resulted in a safe delivery.

鈥淗er coming out, and to hear that first cry, was great,鈥� Kyle said.

Hope calls Emmy their miracle baby. Considering all of the medications Hope was taking and the complicated operations, the family says it鈥檚 a blessing that their infant is not only alive, but is healthy and progressing quite well.

And Hope is doing much better these days. She has occasional headaches, but that鈥檚 nothing compared to the extreme pain she experienced before the operation. She and Kyle thank Tavanaiepour for his expertise in saving her life, as well as his personal care and concern.

鈥淗e went above and beyond,鈥� Kyle said. 鈥淗e was comforting and very professional.鈥�

Tavanaiepour was confident her initial operation would turn out well, although he admits he was cautious. In his research, he only found two cases worldwide in which a pregnant woman with a colloid cyst went untreated. In each case, the woman died.

He鈥檚 glad Hope was correctly diagnosed and underwent successful surgery, which allowed vision in her left eye to return to normal.

鈥淭his is one of the most complex surgeries there is. The stakes were high,鈥� Tavanaiepour said. 鈥淧eople may not know that we鈥檙e doing these kinds of operations all the time at 萝莉社 Jacksonville. We鈥檙e getting patients through, not just with effective surgery, but also with compassionate care.鈥�

Looking ahead

Hope sports a short haircut these days. Her black hair is styled in a way that masks the surgical scars. The shunt isn鈥檛 noticeable either. A stranger would have no idea what she has endured just by looking at her.

Instead of nonstop body aches, multiple doctor visits and surgery preparation, Hope now focuses her attention on her family, as well as her goals and passions.

Dancing is a long-lived hobby Hope wants to rekindle. And she remains determined to pursue a teaching career. Thanks to Tavanaiepour and others at 萝莉社 Jacksonville, she鈥檒l be able to chase her dream of guiding tomorrow鈥檚 youth.

鈥淚鈥檝e always loved working with kids,鈥� Hope said. 鈥淲hoever teaches them at that age is forever shaping their future.鈥�

If anyone knows how precious the future is, it鈥檚 Hope.