In September of 1993, Rebecca, a wife, mother, and career woman had just finished a 20 million dollar proposal, baked cookies for her daughters 2nd grade class, and played three sets of tennis the week before being diagnosed with a malignant grade iv glioblastoma multiforme. Here is her story in her own words:

  I would have given anything in 1993 to have been able to read accounts of other survivors. The first book I read said to search out survivors of what you had been diagnosed with and see what they did. In 1993 there was not the availability of the brain tumor list, no internet accessibility like today, very few local support services, no virtual trial database, and there was virtually very little way to connect with others who had this disease. The American Brain Tumor Association, National Brain Tumor Foundation and The Brain Tumor Society eventually put me in touch with others who had survived. Just knowing that there were survivors gave me hope - one of natures best medicines. For this hope, I am grateful to share my story.
  After determining that I had a brain tumor, an emergency stereo-tactic computer-assisted craniotomy was performed by Dr. Brian Beyerl at Overlook Hospital in Summit, NJ. The tumor was located deep within the left parietal lobe of the brain very close to the motor skills. Due to the nature of this tumor and the microscopic cells which are likely to remain even after a sucessful removal, the surgery was followed with 35 treatments of standard beam radiation, specifically aimed directly at the tumor to minimize damage to healthy tissue. This treatment left me tired and bald but bolder and uninhibited about my determination to survive.
  After consulting with Dr. Mark Malkin at Memorial Sloan-Kettering in NY City and later with Dr. Fred Hochberg at Mass General in Boston, Massachusetts, I began a round of chemotherapy often called PCV, my treatment consisting of BCNU (or CCNU), Vincristine, and Procarbazine. I elected this treatment although known to be ineffective at the time, because I met a young woman who had taken it when it was a clinical trial and she has survived for nearly twenty years now with no deficits. I had a simple belief - if it can work for her, it can work for me. Today there are more effective treatments for which I am grateful - especially should I need them in the future.
  The future ... in 1993 no one held out a future for me. At 38 years old I was told I might survive a year, maybe two. I was completely paralyzed on the right side prior to surgery. The surgery was a great risk due to tumor location. Now in the past 5 years, I have included many non traditional modalities to survival which cannot be measured in milligrams, centimeters, rads, or statistical data. I began piano lessons at age 40 to retrain my right and left brain functions, memorized a gazillion songs to improve my short term memory, I did fun and challenging projects with my daughter, like building a dollhouse, 3D puzzles, taking art lessons, tennis lessons etc. I also undertook a gradual program of herbal alternatives and holistic therapies, do weekly aerobics and walk 2 miles with my dog, and even wrote a book about my survival - entitled Thats Unacceptable - an attitude that has gotten me further than anyone including me would have imagined.
  The technical stuff I leave in the capable hands of my doctors, the rest I leave in the hands of God. I have been truly blessed to be treated by high caliber professionals who are willing to offer me hope. That hope is what I am determined to share for as long as I am a survivor and may that be a very very long time...