Glioblastoma and me
Ashish Sharma was diagnosed with stage 4 Gliablastoma in February 2020. Shortly after that he had a stroke. He wrote the following decsription sometime in 2021 – “I have a grade 4 brain tumor (Glioblastoma), in the thalamus. It has no cure and no remission. It cannot be completely removed because it’s very invasive and will grow back.
I have studied brain cancer for many years and there is no known cause. Till I was diagnosed with Glioblastoma on February 25, 2020, I was rarely sick.
I had a brain biopsy on February 27, 2020, and shortly after that, I had a stroke.
Subsequently, I have also suffered from numerous other complications. Most notably, spinal and rib fractures due to the long-term high dose steroids prescribed to control brain swelling”.
“I have been bed-bound since November 2020. I have had life-saving drains installed initially to relieve pressure in the brain and then a shunt. COVID struck the States around this time, and I couldn’t leave the ICU. My family was banned from the hospital but ultimately, I went to a rehab facility, and completed six weeks of chemo and radiation.
You could say I have been through a lot!
My wife Rachael and daughter Rhea have been very supportive. Rhea is 9 and is doing her best to understand everything that’s going on.
My parents have visited thrice; when I first got sick in February 2020, in the summer of 2021, and since November 2021 they have been looking after me”.