A college senior has been diagnosed with an aggressive brain tumor after suffering a brain hemorrhage while on vacation in Mexico.
Liza Burke, a senior at the University of Georgia, was on spring break in Cabo San Lucas when she became unresponsive and was rushed to the hospital.
Doctors initially believed that a condition called arteriovenous malformation (AVM) caused Burke’s brain to hemorrhage. AVM occurs when blood vessels get tangled abnormally, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.
However, after more testing, doctors discovered that Burke does not have AVM, but instead has a tumor near her brain stem, according to a March 24 update from a GoFundMe page the family set up to help with Burke’s medical costs.
Doctors believe the tumor was dormant for “many years before it became aggressive in a very short time,” Burke’s mother, Laura McKeithen, wrote on the GoFundMe page, which has so far raised more than $158,000.
Burke is currently in the third week of a six-week course of radiation treatments and recently became responsive again, according to her mother.
Her mom, who has been sharing frequent updates about Burke’s progress on her personal blog, said in an April 9 post that her daughter was communicating with “toe wiggles, arm raises … a kiss for me, and a wide open mouth for teeth brushing!”
In an April 13 blog post, McKeithen shared that a new hemorrhage had been discovered in her daughter’s brain.
“The cause of the hemorrhage is unknown but one possibility is that it’s the tumor weakening!” she wrote. “Fortunately Liza’s vital signs are still in a safe range in spite of it.”
She also shared that on April 14, Burke is having an external ventricular drain (EVD) inserted to help drain fluid from her brain.
In a recent GoFundMe page update, McKeithen marked one month since her daughter’s health saga began.
On March 10, while still in Mexico, 22-year-old Burke complained of a headache and went to lie down. A few hours later, her boyfriend found her unconscious, according to McKeithen.
Burke was initially taken to a local hospital before being transported to the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida.
“The last month has been nothing short of a nightmare, a roller coaster and a love story all rolled up into one,” her mom wrote in a GoFundMe page update. “We give thanks that Liza has survived despite the odds.”
McKeithen also asked supporters to pray for her daughter.
“Please pray that our beautiful sleeping warrior is working alongside God, the Universe and her sister, Edie, to quietly guide its ray to shrink the tumor,” she wrote, referring to Liza’s late sister, Edie, who died in 2008 from a rare genetic disorder.
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