Francisco Vilhena received a brain cancer diagnosis at 43, with a grade IV glioblastoma identified. The medical prognosis pointed to a five-year life expectancy, of which one year has already passed, and he is now 44 years old. The tumor was discovered after Francisco sought medical help for symptoms that were initially thought to be possible burnout, with a CT scan revealing the true cause of what was happening.
Faced with the risk of not surviving the surgery to remove the tumor, Francisco made the decision to bring the wedding forward. He married his husband one day before the surgical procedure, entering the operating room already as a married man. The diagnosis, the wedding and the operation all ended up happening in the same week.
After the surgery, Francisco underwent radiotherapy sessions and oral chemotherapy simultaneously. Despite the treatments, the cancer returned and doctors indicated that the next step would be palliative care. Francisco reacted with disbelief to this perspective, questioning the doctors and expressing a desire to defy the course that was being presented to him.
Francisco is the third case of this type of tumor in the family, having expressed the desire to change what he considers to be a family fate. One year after the initial diagnosis, he now faces a new stage of the disease, after the cancer reappeared.
