A Father and Daughter Journey Through Brain Tumors

When both Mindy Naumann and her father, Gary, were faced with the devastating diagnoses of brain tumors and cancer, they put their trust in Henry Ford Health to guide them through the fight.

When Mindy Naumann experienced a sudden visual disturbance while Christmas shopping in 2012, she had no idea it would lead to a life-changing diagnosis—and eventually, a shared medical journey with her father.

A life-altering discovery

“After the visual disturbance, I called my neurologist who had treated me prior to this incident due to hand trembling and he recommended that I go to the local emergency room to obtain an MRI and CT scan of my brain,” she recalls. The former pharmaceutical representative had recently stopped taking anti-anxiety medication, which she believed caused her symptoms. But the imaging results revealed something far more serious.

“Imaging showed I had a brain lesion that had nothing to do with the visual disturbance I was experiencing.”

Though initially told to monitor the lesion without treatment, Mindy’s symptoms worsened over time. In 2015, a sleep specialist recommended a follow-up MRI that showed the lesion had grown to the size of a ping pong ball.

“The same specialist who told me to monitor the situation was now questioning whether I should seek fertility treatment since I was trying to have a child.”

The turning point: Finding answers at Henry Ford Health

Frustrated with the lack of clear answers for treatment, Mindy sought the advice of a colleague in the medical industry who recommended Jack Rock, M.D. as the ‘best neurosurgeon in the business’. After she and her father Gary researched medical specialists and facilities more thoroughly, she could not agree more with her colleague’s recommendation.

“After meeting and having an evaluation with Dr. Rock, I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. After three years, I was finally given a correct diagnosis of Oligodendroglioma, and that surgery would be the best course of treatment. When I asked him how he knew, he explained that he not only subspecializes in glial tumors but has published research on it.”

As she prepared for surgery, Mindy sensed something different about Henry Ford Health.

“Everyone from the janitorial staff to the nurses and doctors were so friendly and on top of things. As I was crying like a baby as I was about to undergo surgery, I remember telling the staff that I was so thankful for the care and treatment at Henry Ford and that I was going to work there someday.”

Dr. Rock explains that Oligodendrogliomas, a type of glioma, form from glial cells in the brain. Because these tumors often grow in areas that control speech and motor function, Mindy was a candidate for an awake craniotomy—a specialized brain surgery that keeps the patient awake to monitor cognitive function.

“Often, the tumor appears similar to normal functioning brain tissue and by having the patient awake for a portion of the surgery, the surgeon can remove tumor without injuring the normal functioning surrounding brain tissue. As a result the maximum volume of tumor can be removed while the patient’s vital neurological functions remain intact,” he says.
“After surgery even after a large percentage of the tumor has been removed, there may, after histological and molecular review, be a need for adjunctive treatments which include radiation and chemotherapy,” says Dr. Rock.

Mindy currently takes vorasidenib, a recently approved FDA drug that has shown promise in managing progression of the disease and has not needed chemotherapy or radiation therapy after her procedure.

Triumph and purpose: Giving back after recovery

Two years after Mindy’s successful surgery, she fulfilled her dream of having a child. Since then, she’s enjoyed her role as a stay-at-home mom while becoming a passionate advocate for brain tumor awareness including volunteering at Henry Ford.

“I have raised awareness and funds by assembling my brain tumor walk team called Rock Star in honor of Dr. Rock. He happens to be a musician on the side and as his biggest fan, I wanted to honor him in our walk to raise awareness for the Hermelin Brain Tumor Center at Henry Ford,” she proudly states. She also serves on the hospital’s patient advocate committee, helping others navigate their own brain tumor journeys.

When life strikes twice: A second brain tumor in the family

Six years after Mindy’s successful treatment, her father Gary, a retired fire protection specialist from Grosse Pointe Woods, began noticing subtle mental changes in 2020—just before his retirement during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I couldn’t pinpoint the problem but I could tell things were off mentally,” he says.

A shocking revelation

At an Oktoberfest celebration that fall, Mindy and her husband noticed Gary’s delayed responses during a conversation. Concerned, Mindy took him to a doctor.

“When my husband asked him how he was doing, he responded that he was doing well but he thinks he may have had a stroke,” she remembers. “We would ask him some questions and there were delays in his response yet just the night before he was babysitting my daughter.”

A CT scan soon revealed a golf-ball-sized brain tumor.

“My initial reaction was I was glad it was a brain tumor and not a stroke because I feel Henry Ford is the best for brain tumors given our previous experiences and research!” Mindy says she immediately turned to her trusted resource and friend, Lisa Scarpace, program manager of the Hermelin Brain Tumor Center for guidance and expertise. But the early prognosis was grim.
“My dad had his initial surgery at a local hospital and it was revealed that the tumor had likely spread to his brain and possibly caused by lung cancer. My dad went from babysitting my daughter the week before to someone who had cancer throughout his body and his primary care physician saying it doesn’t look good,” she says.

Hope renewed at Henry Ford Health

Mindy arranged for her father to receive care at Henry Ford, where his medical oncologist delivered difficult news—but also hope.

“He revealed that my dad had malignant melanoma, similar to what former president Jimmy Carter had and it responds well to immunotherapy. Once again I was so pleased that my dad was in the care of Henry Ford. They offered hope and treatment, where others didn’t.”

Amy Weise, D.O. medical oncologist, who currently monitors Gary says immunotherapy has significantly changed the outlook for melanoma patients.

“When I started practicing medicine, the outlook for melanoma patients was grim with only two FDA approved treatment options. We now have several therapeutic choices to offer patients, many with long term benefit and 5-year survival rates as high as 50%,” she notes.

Dr. Weise explains that immunotherapy works by taking the brakes off the individual’s innate immune system, allowing T-cells (type of white blood cell) to see the cancer as foreign and attack it.
“The best thing about this type of treatment, is that our T-cells have memory and can continue to work even after the treatments stop,” she adds. “Gary is now on surveillance imaging and is considered without evidence of disease, this is the outcome we hope to achieve for all our patients.”

Full circle: A new chapter together

Today, Gary continues to be monitored but is doing remarkably well.

“He has overcome so much including 3 surgeries, pulmonary embolism and countless medical visits but has persevered to the point of receiving the Keep the Faith Award presented by Henry Ford staff. We now live with my dad and he’s even back to babysitting my daughter at times. We’ve been through so much but are happy to be on a period of smooth sailing after the rough patches we have endured,” Mindy shares.

For further information visit Brain Tumor Treatment at Henry Ford Health.