Published Aug 25, 2020

Rapper Megan Thee Stallion, 25, Has Good Reason to Call Mom, Who Recently Passed From a Brain Tumor, Her Greatest Influence

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Megan Thee Stallion Losing Mom To Cancer

Rapper Megan Thee Stallion lost her mom, Holly, to a brain tumor in March 2019
Megan credits her successful music career, and determination to get her degree, to her mother. Holly introduced Megan to her rap influences at a young age, which inspired her to pursue music, and urged her to get her college degree, which she is doing.
Treatment for brain tumors and forms of brain cancer has been slow, but a new technology is showing enormous promise

Rapper Megan Thee Stallion has made an instant name for herself in the music industry through number one hits and internet-breaking music videos. However, behind every successful woman, is another incredible woman who’s raised her. The Savage singer has consistently pointed out how her mother, who passed away from a brain tumor, influenced her music career and decision to continue her college education. Despite not being here, Megan says her mother would be proud.

Megan Jovon Ruth Pete, 25, known by her stage name Megan Thee Stallion, lost her mother, Holly Thomas, to a brain tumor in March 2019. Not only did Holly introduce Megan to her biggest rap influences, which inspired her to get into music, but the rapper is continuing her education and studying to get her degree in health-care administration at Texas Southern University to honor her mother’s wishes.

“I want to get my degree because I really want my mom to be proud,” Megan told People. “She saw me going to school before she passed. My grandmother that's still alive used to be a teacher, so she's on my butt about finishing school. I'm doing it for me, but I'm also doing it for the women in my family who made me who I am today."

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Over recent months since Holly’s passing, Megan has achieved worldwide fame as an incredible rapper releasing hit songs including Savage, Hot Girl Summer, and more. She’s also won awards including the 2019 BET Hip Hop Award for Best Hot Ticket Performer and has hit number one on Billboard multiple times. Even though her mother isn’t here to see these victories, Megan has said she’s celebrating for both of them.

“Wow I used to watch my mom write songs in her bed every day when she got off work so I started doing it too. I know she’s proud,” Megan wrote on Instagram.

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Progress in Brain Tumor Treatment: Slow, but Promising

Developing treatment options for brain tumors and types of brain cancer have been slow, but a relatively new approval called Optune has shown enormous promise in extending patients’ quality of life. Optune is a tumor treating field technology developed by company NovoCure, which aims to disrupt the division of cancer cells in a tumor and may delay the disease from progressing in some patients.

For patients with an aggressive form of brain cancer called glioblastoma, combining Optune alongside standard treatment has yielded impressive results. The average life expectancy of patients battling glioblastoma is typically no longer than two years, but studies have shown some people who have used Optune with standard treatment added two to five years of their life expectancy.

“I just want to emphasize to patients that when I first started doing this in 1999, there were maybe less than 5% of patients with this disease that were alive two years, and now we’re getting out to maybe a third of patients alive at five years,” Dr. Suriya Jeyapalan, a neurologist at Tufts Medical Center tells SurvivorNet. “This is not your father’s brain tumor, and I want to sort of give a message of hope to patients. In the future we’ll add to these treatments and make it even better.”

Dr. Suriya Jeyapalan explains how new technology Optune is changing the game for brain cancer treatment

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