The work of recovery
Even after successful brain surgery, recovery takes time and effort.
“Being totally honest, it was brutal,” he said, “I had to relearn how to walk and talk and all that kind of stuff.”
During recovery, Patrick lost weight and had to rebuild his strength while relearning how to function. After being discharged, he continued physical and occupational therapy to keep getting stronger.
Patrick also credits Emma Shoemaker, who was his girlfriend at the time, with helping him through the hardest days of that first recovery. She stayed by his side, kept him grounded and gave him the support he needed to keep moving forward.
Patrick still lives with permanent effects from his brain tumor, including complete hearing loss in his left ear. But he is grateful for the care that relieved his headaches and double vision.
“The care given to me was top-notch.”
How routine scans caught a lifesaving change
After that first surgery nine years ago, Patrick got back to living. He and Emma married on the second anniversary of his surgery, and they later welcomed a baby boy who is now two years old.
His son is what motivates Patrick to stay on top of his condition and keep taking care of himself.
“He is not particularly easy to keep up with,” Patrick jokes.
Patrick continued routine MRI scans after his surgery and ultimately established a relationship with Dr. Andaluz following Dr. Zuccarello’s retirement.
“When I met Patrick, he came to establish a follow-up after Dr. Zuccarello retired. His MRI showed some small signs of progression, so we chose a conservative approach, as tumor growth is not always linear and could have stabilized,” said Dr. Andaluz.
“Once we saw continuous growth, we all felt more comfortable with the decision to operate.”
A second, and challenging surgery with Dr. Andaluz followed on April 28, 2026.
“Because this surgery involved the brainstem—one of the most challenging areas to operate—there was essentially no margin for error. A successful operation depended not only on surgical skill, but also on a focused surgical team to provide real-time feedback on nerve function and guide critical decisions during the procedure.” Dr. Andaluz said.
“I am blessed to have all those resources at UC Medical Center, and they served Patrick and me very well.”
This time around, Patrick’s life looked different. He had Emma and their young son to get home to. Emma was once again instrumental in his recovery, helping him heal and regain his independence after a second major surgery. Patrick says the care he received—and the support waiting for him at home—made all the difference.
“Everything worked marvelously,” he said.
“Patrick left the hospital and went home just a couple of days after such a surgical feat. We couldn't have hoped for a better outcome,” said Dr. Andaluz.
Patrick even ended up returning to work three weeks earlier than expected.
The surgery was a success, but it came with a challenge. When facial paralysis made it difficult for Patrick’s eye to close, he turned to Ryan Collar, MD, a facial plastic and reconstructive surgeon at UC Health, who placed a weight in his eyelid to protect his eye from drying out.
"Patrick was a great patient. To help him protect his eye that was not closing after his surgery, we simply placed a small piece of platinum beneath the eyelid muscles to enable closure." Dr. Collar said.
