An Aussie dad who recovered from a double lung transplant more than a decade ago has now been told he may only have a few months to live after he was diagnosed with brain cancer.
Murray Brown, 31, who lives in Berwick, in Melbourne‘s south-east, was given the devastating news by surgeons last year when they had found a tumour after he had a seizure.
The father-of-four had the tumour successfully removed by specialists, but doctors said it could grow back.
Doctors conducted a biopsy to examine the cells and discovered that despite the removal of the tumour, Mr Brown has stage three cancer and the disease is incurable.
The cruel health blow comes after Mr Brown received a double lung transplant to treat cystic fibrosis 12 years ago after he was given just weeks to live.
He had lived with the genetic condition, which affects the lungs and digestive system, for his whole life.
There is no cure for the disease and Mr Brown feared he would die until the successful transplant.
Now he faces another gruelling health battle that has already taken a toll on his family as they struggle to come to terms with the diagnosis.
Murray Brown, 31, (pictured) had a tumour successfully removed but a biopsy to examine the cells discovered Mr Brown has stage three cancer and the disease is incurable
Mr Brown’s partner Danielle said the family are staying positive and are trying to make the most of their time with him despite the heartbreaking news.
‘The hardest part is that we don’t know exactly how long he has,’ she told Yahoo.
‘They [doctors] can’t tell us anything. So it could be 12 months, it could be 12 years — that’s very optimistic’.
Danielle said there are several factors that have made it difficult for doctors to understand what treatment plan will be most effective.
This includes how his body will react to anti-rejection drugs, which are medicines given to patients to help them cope with an organ transplant.
Danielle said the hardest part of the process has been explaining the situation to the couple’s young children, who are aged six, four and two-year-old twins.
Mr Brown’s partner Danielle (pictured left) said the hardest part of the process has been explaining the situation to the couple’s young children (pictured)
‘We are quite positive. So it’s okay until you have those moments that sort of knock you for six — looking into the future and picturing what our lives will be like,’ she said.
Mr Brown is currently receiving radiation and chemotherapy and a family friend set up a GoFundMe page to help fund their medical costs.
The fundraiser has to date reached the goal of raising $40,000 with $40,366 raised from a total of 902 donations.
