H E A LT H & W E L L N E S S
A Transformative Triumph Traci Mask battled an aggressive brain tumor eight years ago, unaware that it was preparing her for another major battle ahead. Now cancer-free, the perseverant eternal optimist uses her experiences to help kids in need. by KARI APTED Traci Mask blamed the chairs at first. Working as a kindergarten paraprofessional at South Salem Elementary School in Covington, she felt sure that perching atop tiny plastic chairs all day was the reason for the odd numbness that came and went in her right arm. Still, she mentioned it to her doctor, who ordered an MRI. When her insurance refused to pay for the test, she brushed it off and kept living life as a working mom to son Ryan and daughter Lauren. When the symptoms continued, Mask’s doctor again requested an MRI, but coverage was denied a second time. As she worked out one day, the weight she was holding simply fell out of her hand. The bothersome right arm had gone completely numb. Soon after, Mask was talking to her husband, Shane, while driving to work. “I was talking so fast [that] he couldn’t understand what I was saying,” she said. Afraid that his wife was having a stroke, Shane told her to pull over immediately and raced to her location. The incident was enough for her insurance company
22 The Newton Community Magazine
to finally cover her MRI. They put her into the machine— then pulled her right back out and informed her that she needed to go straight to the doctor’s office. There, she learned that she had a softball-sized brain tumor that needed to be removed immediately. Her neurosurgeon diagnosed her with meningioma, a fast-growing but non-cancerous tumor that grows in the membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord. The surgeon told Mask it was the best kind of brain tumor from which to suffer, except for the fact that it would likely grow back. The surgery went well, and it was not long before she was back at work doing what she loved. Unfortunately, the prediction of tumor regrowth came true. Within two years, Mask had to undergo 25 rounds of radiation and a painful gamma knife procedure to halt its growth. It left her exhausted and without any hair. Though she was understandably hesitant, Mask realized it was time to turn in her notice at South Salem.
