Lizzy Dixon

My mom, Elizabeth “Lizzy,” was diagnosed with an inoperable right thalamic glioblastoma this January. She began having symptoms in mid-2024. 

Mom lived alone (and an hour away from me), so caregiving (getting her to treatments, daily tasks, everyday daily activities like dressing, bathing, and eventually walking) was a struggle. With great support from my job, I drove to her house daily at first, while she was getting radiation. 

She was admitted to the hospital in March. During this time, a task force of friends and family stepped up to the plate. They would message me, “Hey, I’m bringing her white beans. She told me she loves them,” or “Hey, I bathed her and changed her sheets.” 

Her amazing neighbor, a retired oncology nurse, was an angel sent to her. She went every single morning and evening, if needed, to fix mom’s coffee and breakfast, to change the potty chair, etc. It takes a special person to step up and say, “We got this,” and that is what her family and friends — some I’d never met — did for her. 

Mom died May 17, 2025. She was 64. She loved Mardi Gras, so her urn and service were purple, yellow, and green. She also donated her brain to the University of Miami’s brain endowment program in hopes that it may help others in the future.

TAGGED WITH: glioblastoma

Opinions expressed within this story belong solely to the author and do not reflect the views or opinions of the National Brain Tumor Society.