Cyrene’s Fight Against Brain Tumor

This is my goddaughter, Cyrene Hilarie Pesa Briñas. Born through normal delivery and without any complications, Cyrene was just healthy and perfect. But on her third month, it was observed that there is something unusual with her eyes as they seemed to be “vibrating”. Researching online, we suspected that it was nystagmus, a vision condition in which the eyes make repetitive, uncontrolled movements.

During Cyrene’s appointment with her pediatrician, the doctor noted that indeed, Cyrene has nystagmus. However, she was more alarmed with Cyrene’s head circumference (44 cm) as it measured to be much bigger than normal. According to a pediatric neurologist they consulted, at three months old, Cyrene’s head circumference was that of a one-year old baby.

After a series of MRI tests, it was revealed that Cyrene has brain tumor. According to the her pediatric neurologist, the tumor seemed to have spread. She said that Cyrene might need surgery, as well as chemotherapy if the surgery would not be able to completely remove the tumor. She then referred us to a neurosurgeon.

During our visit to the neurosurgeon, she said that surgery was impossible as the tumor has already invaded sensitive parts of Cyrene’s brain. She noted that if Cyrene will undergo surgery, there’s high possibility that she’ll lose her sense of sight and she may not be able to wake up anymore. She said that it was not worth the risk. Chemotherapy remains the only option now as Cyrene is very young to undergo radiation therapy.

Upon consultation with her pediatric oncologist, Cyrene is scheduled to have her first chemotherapy session on January 28, 2019 at PGH. From then, Cyrene needs to visit the hospital for her weekly chemotherapy sessions which could take up to 18 months to 2 years. Cyrene was also advised to undergo MRI of the spine to check whether the tumor has spread on her spinal cord.

As PhilHealth would not be able to cover all the medical expenses, we would like to ask for your kind assistance in their financial burden.

Thank you for taking time to read this. Your help and your prayers and support in this time would be greatly appreciated. Please let us win this fight.