Clinton Hill Brain Tumor Survivor To Be Honored Saturday

A Brooklyn man who endured three surgeries in the last three years to remove a brain tumor will be honored this weekend at the second annual Miles for Hope event in Flushing Meadow Park on Saturday, July 27.

Josh Fiala, who grew up in Clinton Hill, was just 19 years old when he was overcome by a series of painful, seemingly random migraines despite his active lifestyle. When a subsequent MRI diagnosed the source—juvenile pilocytic astrocytoma—it was literally his worst fear come to life.

"My dad had died two years earlier from a brain tumor (a meningioma)," says Fiala. "Doctors told me it was just coincidence, that there’s no genetic connection. But that didn’t help me feel any better."

After an initial surgery helped to stop the hemorrhage taking place but failed to remove all of the cancerous tissue, Fiala's mother sought out another specialist who could. After meeting with multiple skeptical surgeons, her search led her to Dr. Souweidane of the Weill Cornell Brain and Spine Center.

Souweidane said "it would take a marathon, but he could get the job done."

"When you think of brain surgeons, I thought it would have to be someone with a crazy ego and someone who can’t relate to the common man, y'know?" says Fiala. "But he made me feel so comfortable right off the bat. And, the endurance of this guy to do a 10-hour surgery was amazing!"    
 
But if Souweidane showed impressive stamina, Fiala exhibited an equally large amount of courage in anticipation of his second operation.

"It felt like you were going blind into the abyss," he says. "I didn’t know whether my personality was going to change. It's scary when you're dealing with the brain. But luckily I had amazing friends and everyone was hanging out with me the night before the surgery."

After two marathon surgeries over the course of a week, the tumor was completely removed.

"I owe my life to Dr. Souwedaine," he says. "But even more so to my mom for finding him and being there for me 150%—just being a mom." 

In the year and a half since his surgery, Fiala has studied at the CIA, worked at multiple restaurants around New York City, traveled to Israel via the Birthright program and devoted time to United Cerebral Palsy of NYC mentoring other individuals. At Saturday's event he will be representing the Weill Cornell Brain and Spine Center Children’s Brain Tumor Project, which funds neuroscientists researching how to treat rare and inoperable brain tumors.

To those facing similar medical challenges as he did, Fiala offers this advice:

"Stay as positive as you can and never underestimate the support of friends and family," he says. "Remember to look toward the future."

To learn more about the Weill Cornell Brain and Spine Center Children’s Brain Tumor Project, you can visit their site here.