Valley 6-year-old battling rare brain tumor
PHOENIX (AZFamily) — Six-year-old Bowen loves Iron Man and dinosaurs, especially a tyrannosaurus rex. It’s one of the strongest dinosaurs that existed, and strong is how you describe Bowen, too.
“We have our good days and our bad days for sure, but he’s a lot braver than I would be I would think,” said Bowen’s mom, Lindsey Venetos.
Late last year, Bowen was complaining about his vision when he was taken to get an MRI. It was discovered he had craniopharyngioma, a rare, non-cancerous brain tumor that affects one to two people out of a million each year.
“It started out as an underdeveloped eye, and then it turned into a brain tumor,” said Bowen’s other mom, Tessa Barnes.
Bowen is taking medication, but the tumor has already affected his vision and weight. It’s also caused some severe headaches.
“It is a journey. You feel like you hit walls; you feel like you’re not being heard and listened to, but keep on pushing and keep on fighting,” Venetos said.
Both Venetos and Barnes hope to raise awareness of this rare tumor and the courageous fight their son is now undergoing.
“He understands as best as a six-year-old can understand,” Barnes said.
“It’s life changing and we take a lot of things our body can do for granted,” added Venetos.
A GoFundMe has been started to help Bowen’s family pay for medical expenses moving forward.
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