“Antiques Roadshow” alum Theo Burrell, 38, continues to reach milestone moments, like watching her son start kindergarten and marrying her longtime partner, despite living with stage 4 glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer.
She remains in active treatment, undergoing brain surgery and radiation this year, and openly shares both her fatigue from treatment and her unwavering optimism.
Radiation therapy, a standard part of glioblastoma care, aims to target remaining cancer cells after surgery, though it can bring side effects such as fatigue, hair loss, skin changes, and cognitive shifts.
Dr. Ganesh Shankar, a neurosurgeon at Massachusetts General Hospital, says, “For glioblastomas, it’s standard to follow surgery with a combination of chemotherapy and radiation.”
Even though surgery can remove a large part of the tumor, any remaining cancer cells can continue to grow over time, leading to the tumor’s return. For this reason, surgery is often followed by other treatments, like radiation or chemotherapy, to try to eliminate any remaining cells.
“The goal is to remove as much of the tumor as we can while keeping the patient well neurologically,” Dr. Reid Thompson, Chair of Neurosurgery at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, tells SurvivorNet.
For “Antiques Roadshow” star Theo Burrell, 38, the past year has been filled with milestone moments she once feared she might never reach after being diagnosed with brain cancer in 2022.
From watching her young son climb the steps of his kindergarten school bus to finally saying “I do” to her sweetheart, Alex, 40, after 13 years together, she continues to embody what hope looks like for someone living with glioblastoma, which is one of the most aggressive forms of brain cancer.
These joyful moments haven’t come without hardship. Burrell is still an active stage 4 cancer patient, navigating treatment while trying to savor life’s biggest chapters.
Earlier this year, she underwent brain surgery followed by radiation therapy, a treatment designed to target the remaining cancer cells surgeons could not safely remove.
“As we know, the battle to get brain cancer and brain tumors under control continues, but I must say, I’m reading and seeing so much positive news going on in the brain tumor world,” Burrell shared in an Instagram post.
“My tiredness continues as do the steroids, which have made me gain so much weight, but I’ve dusted off my Fitbit and am getting out and about on sunny days. Tomorrow Alex and I get MARRIED!!!! After 13 years together, I’m really looking forward to finally calling him my husband. Photos to follow!” she added, her excitement unmistakable.
WATCH: Radiation Therapy in the Treatment of Glioma
Radiation therapy uses high‑energy X-rays to damage the DNA of cancer cells so they can no longer grow or divide. For many people with gliomas, it’s recommended after surgery to target any remaining tumor cells that couldn’t be removed. Although the treatment itself is painless, the aftermath can be challenging.
Radiation is typically delivered over multiple sessions, about five days a week, for several weeks. Each session lasts about 15 to 30 minutes, and patients can go home immediately afterward.
While the therapy is designed to be as precise as possible, side effects can still occur, including:
Fatigue
Hair loss in the treated area
Skin changes, such as redness or dryness
Headaches
Nausea or appetite changes
Cognitive effects, such as memory or concentration issues
Communicating these symptoms to the care team is especially important so they can offer support and adjust treatment if needed.
“I finished my two weeks of radiotherapy on Friday last week. I’m tired but feeling well. Just got to hope it’s done its thing,” Burrell wrote, acknowledging the lingering effects of treatment.
Dr. Ganesh Shankar, a neurosurgeon at Massachusetts General Hospital, tells SurvivorNet that radiation remains a cornerstone of care for certain glioma types.
“For glioblastomas, it’s standard to follow surgery with a combination of chemotherapy and radiation,” he explains.
Radiation is especially important when tumors extend into areas too risky to operate on, helping shrink or slow tumor growth—though it can also affect nearby healthy brain tissue.
WATCH: Understanding Glioma: Challenges of Radiation Therapy vs. Surgery
Burrell first noticed symptoms of what would become her stage 4 brain cancer in December 2021. She was later diagnosed with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of glioma known for its rapid growth and limited average survival.
Despite the statistics, with treatment, average survival is about 15 months; without treatment, it often drops to less than six.
Burrell has undergone multiple treatments, including chemotherapy, radiation, and brain surgery. The physical and emotional toll of this journey, combined with the difficult statistics surrounding glioblastoma, makes every day and every milestone meaningful.
For many cancer patients, moments like birthdays, first days of school, or weddings take on a deeper resonance. For Burrell, seeing her son off to school for the first time and marrying Alex stand among those cherished moments.
Her supporters continue to rally around her courage and honesty.
“I so admire everything you’re doing, but also your honesty with it all. I hope you have an amazing day,” wrote Instagram user Aileen Rooney.
“Sending you much love and to you and Alex a blessed wedding day, committing to each other…. Can’t wait to see pics,” added Instagram user Tima Cooke.
After Radiotherapy, What Patients Can Expect?
Once you finish your course of radiation therapy, your care team will schedule routine follow‑up visits to track your recovery and monitor how well the treatment is working. These next steps often include:
Regular MRI Scans: Your doctor will order periodic MRIs to evaluate the effects of radiation and watch for any signs of tumor growth or recurrence.
Managing Side Effects: Some symptoms can linger for weeks or even months. Your team will help you manage fatigue, skin changes, cognitive shifts, or other ongoing effects.
Rehabilitation Services: If radiation affects memory, speech, or physical abilities, you may be referred to physical therapy, occupational therapy, or speech therapy to support recovery.
Emotional Support: The experience of radiation can be emotionally taxing. Counseling, support groups, and connecting with others who’ve been through similar treatment can make a meaningful difference.
Long‑Term Monitoring: Radiation continues working in the body even after treatment ends. Some patients improve over time, while others may need additional therapies such as chemotherapy or targeted treatments. Your medical team will tailor your follow‑up plan to your specific needs.
Glioma patients should also expect ongoing brain imaging after treatment to monitor for any changes, explains Dr. Natasha Robinette, neuroradiologist at Karmanos Cancer Center in Detroit.
“Every three months, you’re going to get this imaging. As long as things are looking good, then usually we can move to a six‑month follow‑up and then eventually to a one‑year follow‑up,” Dr. Robinette said.
Surgery to remove a brain tumor is delicate by nature, and every movement inside the skull must balance precision with safety.
“We take off the bone overlaying the area we need to get to. We open the little envelope around the brain called the dura, and then we move through the brain tissue to get to where the tumor is to try to cut out as much as we can safely, without hurting the patient’s function or other important things like big blood vessels that can cause things like a stroke,” explains says board-certified neurosurgeon at Emory University School of Medicine Dr. Kimberly Hoang.
Following surgery, patients are closely monitored and often receive radiation to prevent tumor regrowth—particularly in cases where multiple tumors or metastatic disease are involved.
WATCH: What To Expect From Your Glioma Surgery
“Because many patients can have more than one brain tumor or metastasis from their cancer, it was not reasonable to think about surgery for them,” Dr. Hoang tells SurvivorNet. “They also get radiation for those spots as well, to try to keep those tumors from growing or shrink them down.”
Treatment Advancements & the Challenge of the Blood-Brain Barrier
Chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and targeted therapies have long been effective in treating cancer throughout the body. But the brain’s natural defense — the blood-brain barrier — makes these treatments less effective when it comes to brain tumors.
This barrier is “a network of blood vessels and tissue…made up of closely spaced cells and helps keep harmful substances from reaching the brain,” according to the National Cancer Institute.
Still, Dr. Hoang notes that recent advancements in drug design are beginning to improve treatment efficacy in the brain.
Understanding Side Effects of Brain Tumor Treatment
Side effects vary depending on the tumor’s size, location, and number of lesions present.
“Radiation treatment can cause swelling in the tumor as the tumor ‘dies,’ and the surrounding tissue can also become swollen as the treatment takes effect,” Dr. Krishanthan Vigneswaran, a neurosurgeon with UT Health Houston and Memorial Hermann, tells SurvivorNet.
“This swelling can cause symptoms of headache, nausea, vomiting, and neurological loss of function…Surgical resection can also induce swelling, but this is more transient.”
Tumor location often determines what symptoms emerge:
“If it’s near your movement area, movement on one side of the body can be affected. If it’s near your speech area, your speech and the way you form words and express them can be affected,” Dr. Hoang explains.
She also notes brain surgery tends to be less painful than other types — like spinal or abdominal — due to fewer nerves in the surgical area.
WATCH: Biopsy or Surgery First? How Surgeons Decide With Glioma Patients
Recovery & Long-Term Monitoring
“Because of this unique quality of metastatic brain disease, an oncology team will have to monitor a patient indefinitely during remission,” Dr. Vigneswaran says.
Many experts recommend joining a support group — especially one with people who’ve undergone similar procedures. Their lived experience can offer comfort and practical advice.
“Support groups can be incredibly helpful to patients and are commonly offered at major cancer centers and hospitals,” says Dr. Jennifer Moliterno, Chief of Neurosurgical Oncology at Yale Cancer Center.
Mental health professionals are also often part of the care team, helping patients manage the emotional effects of surgery, treatment, and recovery.
Understanding Burrell’s Glioblastoma Diagnosis
Diagnosing gliomas involves a multi-step approach that includes clinical assessment, imaging studies, histopathological examination, and molecular testing.
As patients are diagnosed, they’re observed for typical glioma symptoms. These may include:
Headaches
Seizures
Cognitive or Behavioral Changes
Visual or Speech Changes and Impairments
Loss of Body Weight and Deconditioning
Changes in mental function, mood, or personality
Changes in speech
Sensory changes in hearing, smell, and sight
Loss of balance
Changes in your pulse and breathing rate
During the clinical assessment, the physician will take a detailed history, focusing on the onset and progression of symptoms. Since gliomas can present with non-specific symptoms that overlap with other neurological conditions, ruling out conditions like stroke, infections, or inflammatory disorders is essential during the initial clinical evaluation.
Patients then undergo a neurological exam that tests cranial nerve function, motor strength and coordination, sensory function, and cognitive abilities.
Next, patients undergo an MRI, which provides doctors with a visualization of the tumor.
“If you’re suspected of having a tumor on imaging and our neurosurgeons think that tumor can come out, they will take a piece of that tumor out first and confirm in the operating room and with our pathologists that, in fact, what they are looking at is a tumor,” Dr. Alexandra Miller, Director of the Neuro-Oncologist Division at NYU Langone Health, tells SurvivorNet. “And if it is, they resect it at that time. It’s not usually a two-step procedure.”
If surgery cannot be performed due to tumor location or patient-specific factors, a less invasive stereotactic biopsy can be obtained. Once the tissue sample is obtained, it’s examined under a microscope for molecular testing. At this stage, the tumor is given a grade, which determines how aggressive it is.
WATCH: Molecular testing for glioma patients
Grade I-II gliomas – These are considered low-grade and tend to grow slowly. “The grade one is a very indolent, benign tumor that can be cured with surgery alone,” Dr. Henry Friedman, Deputy Director of the Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center at Duke, tells SurvivorNet.
Grade III gliomas—These are considered high-grade and tend to grow more rapidly. They are typically classified as malignant and require more aggressive treatment, which can include surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy.
Grade IV gliomas – These are the most aggressive gliomas, which are locally aggressive and require treatment intensification. Glioblastomas are the most common grade IV glioma, “which is by far the most well-known and feared tumor in the lay population and, quite frankly, the medical population,” Dr. Friedman explains.
How Are Gliomas Treated?
Burrell has already undergone surgery to remove her tumor, followed by chemotherapy and radiation, which helped extract the remaining bits of the cancer that surgery could not remove. Specific details of her ongoing treatment remain unclear at this time. However, the route she took early on is typical for glioblastoma treatment.
“The first step is always the neurosurgery. How much can you take out? Is it safe to do surgery? Do you have to rely on a biopsy? Can you even do a biopsy?” Dr. Friedman tells SurvivorNet.
The main treatment options are:
Observation—Some benign, small, and asymptomatic gliomas or tumors located in inoperable locations can be recommended for observation.
Surgery is often the first-line treatment for gliomas, with the goal of achieving maximal safe resection, where the largest amount of tumor is removed without causing significant neurologic deficits. For low-grade gliomas, surgery alone can sometimes be curative.
After surgery, pathologists examine the tumor tissue to understand its features and molecular makeup. This added step helps doctors outline an appropriate treatment.
“We go through a very elaborate process of diagnostics, which includes looking at it under the microscope through our pathology team,” Dr. Friedman explained to SurvivorNet.
WATCH: The Role of Surgery in Treating Gliomas
Radiation and chemotherapy are often needed after surgery because removing the tumor completely is usually not possible due to the tumor’s ability to spread into surrounding brain tissue.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved some drug treatments, including temozolomide (Temodar), to help patients with this aggressive disease. Temozolomide is a chemotherapy drug patients can take after surgery and radiation therapy.
Targeted therapy and immunotherapy are newer treatments designed to target specific genetic mutations in the tumor or to stimulate the immune system to fight the cancer. Their role in the treatment of gliomas is continuing to evolve.
Other FDA-approved drugs for treating glioblastoma include lomustine (Gleostine), intravenous carmustine (Bicnu), carmustine wafer implants, and Avastin (bevacizumab).
Avastin is a targeted drug therapy that blocks glioblastoma cells from requesting new blood vessels that feed and allow the tumor to grow.
The FDA approved Vorasidenib, an IDH inhibitor. It works by blocking the mutated enzyme, slowing tumor growth, and extending the time before disease progression. IDH mutant gliomas tend to grow more slowly and have a better prognosis than IDH wild-type gliomas.
Dr. Alexandra Miller tells SurvivorNet that Vorasidenib is a “huge breakthrough for people with IDH mutant tumors.”
“What I tell my patients is that we have these effective treatments, but what they do is they delay the time to when this tumor comes back. Only in exceptional circumstances would we ever talk about getting rid of one of these cancers, a few,” Dr. Daniel Wahl, professor of radiation and oncology at the University of Michigan, tells SurvivorNet.
The Origins of Burrell’s Cancer Journey
Burrell’s cancer journey began in 2022 when she was diagnosed with glioblastoma.
“Receiving my diagnosis, at the age of 35, when my son was one year old, was devastating,” Burrell previously told U.K.-based news outlet The Sun.
Burrell is among the team of experts that appeared on the popular television show that comes from auction houses. She appeared on the British version of the show, which tours throughout the U.K., valuing various treasures and trinkets. She has been a part of the show since 2018.
Theo Burrell has been diagnosed with glioblastoma.
However, she says things changed seemingly in a flash after her diagnosis.
“Overnight, everything had changed. Suddenly, I’d gone from being a healthy person in the middle of my life with a new baby to having incurable cancer with maybe only a year or two left to live,” Burrell said.
After being diagnosed, Burrell said she immediately underwent surgery to remove the tumor. She also had chemotherapy and radiation. She said in a recent interview that since her diagnosis, she’s gone through the rigors of treatment.
“I’ve lost my hair, I’m no longer allowed to drive, and I’m no longer able to work,” she said.
“What followed was months of surgery and treatment to try and prolong my life, and … I continue to make the best of each day,” Burrell added, saying she’s “doing quite well.”
Since her diagnosis, Burrell has become a brain cancer advocate.
WATCH: How SurvivorNet’s Proprietary AI-tool “My Health Questions” Is Making a Difference In Patient’s Lives
Questions for Your Doctor
If you have been diagnosed with glioblastoma, here are some questions you may consider asking your doctor. We also encourage you to explore SurvivorNet’s proprietary AI-platform “My Health Questions” to assist you with your cancer journey.
What stage is my brain cancer?
What are the treatment options for my brain cancer?
Am I a good candidate for temozolomide?
What are the risks and benefits of the recommended treatment?
What are the side effects of the recommended treatment?
How long will it take to recover from treatment, and will I be able to return to work and normal activities?
What’s the likelihood that insurance will cover the recommended treatment?
