Evan and Margaret Shonk
Our story
In November of 2004 Evan suffered a focal seizure to the left hand side of his body. It was this event that lead to him being diagnosed with a grade three glioma.
It was situated in the parietal lobe of the brain. This area is responsible for speech, comprehension and movement. Evan was operated on to hopefully remove the tumour. He also had chemotherapy and radiotherapy to reduce the risk of regrowth occurring.
During the treatment phase he had two young children, was unable to work for a year or drive. He remembers that his life was tipped upside down. The stress of this period was exacerbated when both his brother Peter and his brother in law Joe, were diagnosed with brain tumors. Unfortunately, Evan was the only one to survive. Joe and Peter both left behind young families who had to struggle without a dad.
Evan had an excellent recovery with no re-occurring problems. He has been able to run his own business, and be there for his children. He sails, dives and is a Scout leader.
He is very grateful for his good health and feels compelled to help bring brain cancer into the public eye in the hope that there will be more funding made available for research and support.
