Tom Parker's Cancer Journey
- Tom Parker shared a sweet photo of him with his family, and also showed off his shaved head amid brain cancer battle.
- Parker, 32, has glioblastoma, a cancerous brain tumor; roughly 12,000 new cases of glioblastoma are diagnosed every year in the U.S.
- Many people going through cancer treatment lose their hair as a result of treatment; options like wigs can help make the hair loss more manageable.
Singer Tom Parker just shared a sweet family photo, holding his newborn baby as his big sister kisses her on the head. It’s even more touching when you understand what Parker’s shaved head represents. Parker is battling brain cancer. He publicly shared his diagnosis in October.
Related: Amazing News For The Wanted’s Tom Parker Amid Battle With Brain Cancer: A Father For the Second Time
We’ve been following Parkers journey since he shared his diagnosis, and we are heartened to see him enjoying so much family time. “Is there a love like it? ” Parker wrote on Instagram this today, surrounded by his loving family: Wife Kelsey Hardwick, daughter Aurelia Rose, and newborn son Bodhi Thomas.
Understanding Glioblastoma
Glioblastoma is a malignant tumor found in the brain or spine, and it’s the most common brain tumor found in adults. Very few people diagnosed with glioblastoma live longer than two years. However, newer treatments have shown to extend the life span of people with this kind of brain cancer.
Related: Tom Parker, 32, of ‘The Wanted,’ Finds Joy In Life’s Simplest Moments During Brain Cancer Battle; Shares Adorable Photos of Little Ones
“There’s been a very exciting development of tumor treating fields, which are electrical fields that have been applied to the brain,” Dr. Suriya Jeyapalan, a neurologist at Tufts Medical Center, said in an earlier interview with SurvivorNet. They’re basically these adhesive pads that connect to a device … and it generates this alternating electrical current.”
Related: Should The Wanted’s Tom Parker, 32, Consider Optune for Inoperable Brain Tumor? The Treatment Can Extend Survival Time in Some Patients
Glioblastoma, the most common primary brain cancer, is classified as a “grade IV brain tumor,” which means the tumors contain the most abnormal cells and are also the most aggressive. Approximately 12,000 cases of glioblastoma are diagnosed annually in the United States.
Could a New Treatment Have Saved John McCain? Fighting Brain Cancer With Electric Fields
Coping with Hair Loss from Cancer Treatment
Parker has said he is undergoing chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatments in an effort to shrink his brain tumor. The effects of chemotherapy, which often include hair loss, may account for his shaved head. For some people who experience hair loss from cancer treatment, it may be difficult to cope with this new reality.
Laurie Ostacher, a medical social worker at Sutter Bay Medical Foundation, told SurvivorNet in an earlier interview, “To look into the mirror and see a bald head is difficult for most people. There’s a lot of grief that comes with a cancer diagnosis and losing your hair can feel like another loss. The more we try to push it away and say it doesn’t matter, the longer it tends to stick around. Grieve that loss, so you can move on.”
Related: Dealing With Hair Loss During Chemotherapy
Dr. Stephanie Wethington, a gynecologic oncologist at Johns Hopkins Medicine, told SurvivorNet in a previous interview, “Hair loss is, unfortunately, the one side-effect that I tell everybody is pretty universal with our chemo regimens. So Paclitaxel, one of the two drugs that we use, is what causes the hair loss. And the hair loss is not just hair on head, which is what most people immediately think of, but it’s also eyebrows and eyelashes, which are some of the other places that women notice that they’ve lost hair in particular. Now, there’s no magic bullet or magic pill or anything that can be done to stop it, but there are some things that seem to slow it.” Dr. Wethington shared that “cooling caps” – ice caps or cool scaps worn on the head – can slow hair loss.
Related: How to Slow Hair Loss During Chemotherapy for Ovarian Cancer
Some people may opt to wear a wig after losing their hair from cancer treatments. And there are many wig options available for people battling cancer. Some health insurance plans even cover all or part of the cost of the wig. So you may want to check with your insurance provider prior to wig purchase, to help defray the cost.
Coping with Hair Loss During Ovarian Cancer Treatment
Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.
Tom Parker's Cancer Journey
- Tom Parker shared a sweet photo of him with his family, and also showed off his shaved head amid brain cancer battle.
- Parker, 32, has glioblastoma, a cancerous brain tumor; roughly 12,000 new cases of glioblastoma are diagnosed every year in the U.S.
- Many people going through cancer treatment lose their hair as a result of treatment; options like wigs can help make the hair loss more manageable.
Singer
Tom Parker just shared a sweet family photo, holding his newborn baby as his big sister kisses her on the head. It’s even more touching when you understand what Parker’s shaved head represents. Parker is battling
brain cancer. He publicly shared his diagnosis in October.
Related: Amazing News For The Wanted’s Tom Parker Amid Battle With Brain Cancer: A Father For the Second Time
Read More We’ve been following Parkers journey since he shared his diagnosis, and we are heartened to see him
enjoying so much family time. “Is there a love like it? ” Parker wrote on Instagram this today, surrounded by his loving family: Wife Kelsey Hardwick, daughter Aurelia Rose, and newborn son Bodhi Thomas.
Understanding Glioblastoma
Glioblastoma is a malignant tumor found in the brain or spine, and it’s the most common brain tumor found in adults. Very few people diagnosed with glioblastoma live longer than two years. However, newer treatments have shown to extend the life span of people with this kind of brain cancer.
Related: Tom Parker, 32, of ‘The Wanted,’ Finds Joy In Life’s Simplest Moments During Brain Cancer Battle; Shares Adorable Photos of Little Ones
“There’s been a very exciting development of tumor treating fields, which are electrical fields that have been applied to the brain,” Dr. Suriya Jeyapalan, a neurologist at Tufts Medical Center, said in an earlier interview with SurvivorNet. They’re basically these adhesive pads that connect to a device … and it generates this alternating electrical current.”
Related: Should The Wanted’s Tom Parker, 32, Consider Optune for Inoperable Brain Tumor? The Treatment Can Extend Survival Time in Some Patients
Glioblastoma, the most common primary brain cancer, is classified as a “grade IV brain tumor,” which means the tumors contain the most abnormal cells and are also the most aggressive. Approximately 12,000 cases of glioblastoma are diagnosed annually in the United States.
Could a New Treatment Have Saved John McCain? Fighting Brain Cancer With Electric Fields
Coping with Hair Loss from Cancer Treatment
Parker has said he is undergoing chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatments in an effort to shrink his brain tumor. The effects of chemotherapy, which often include hair loss, may account for his shaved head. For some people who experience hair loss from cancer treatment, it may be difficult to cope with this new reality.
Laurie Ostacher, a medical social worker at Sutter Bay Medical Foundation, told SurvivorNet in an earlier interview, “To look into the mirror and see a bald head is difficult for most people. There’s a lot of grief that comes with a cancer diagnosis and losing your hair can feel like another loss. The more we try to push it away and say it doesn’t matter, the longer it tends to stick around. Grieve that loss, so you can move on.”
Related: Dealing With Hair Loss During Chemotherapy
Dr. Stephanie Wethington, a gynecologic oncologist at Johns Hopkins Medicine, told SurvivorNet in a previous interview, “Hair loss is, unfortunately, the one side-effect that I tell everybody is pretty universal with our chemo regimens. So Paclitaxel, one of the two drugs that we use, is what causes the hair loss. And the hair loss is not just hair on head, which is what most people immediately think of, but it’s also eyebrows and eyelashes, which are some of the other places that women notice that they’ve lost hair in particular. Now, there’s no magic bullet or magic pill or anything that can be done to stop it, but there are some things that seem to slow it.” Dr. Wethington shared that “cooling caps” – ice caps or cool scaps worn on the head – can slow hair loss.
Related: How to Slow Hair Loss During Chemotherapy for Ovarian Cancer
Some people may opt to wear a wig after losing their hair from cancer treatments. And there are many wig options available for people battling cancer. Some health insurance plans even cover all or part of the cost of the wig. So you may want to check with your insurance provider prior to wig purchase, to help defray the cost.
Coping with Hair Loss During Ovarian Cancer Treatment
Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.
