Liam was diagnosed with what we were told was an inoperable brain tumor when he was around 9 months old. The pediatrician had concerns about him developing a lazy eye and having a head that was larger than average. She ordered an MRI and much to everyone's surprise Liam had a brain stem tumor- something completely unrelated to the other issues. After consulting with neurosurgeons at Cook Childrens Hospital, MD Anderson, and Children's hospital in Houston - who all agreed- we did nothing. Liam had an MRI under anesthesia every 3 months. The tumor seemed stable until the 3rd scan. It had grown. We were then referred to a doctor at Lebonheur in Memphis, Tennessee. He felt he could remove the "inoperable" tumor. His efforts however, proved unsuccessful for removal of the tumor. He was able to take a small tissue sample of tumor and definitively diagnose Liam with a "pilocytic Astrocytoma ". This is considered "benign". In February of 2014, Liam had his port placed and started chemotherapy. He went to chemo every week for over year, having scans done every 3 months. Initially, the tumor appeared stable but once the scans were re-evaluated it was discovered that the tumor had, in fact , been growing slowly over time. The tumor was noted to be over 50% larger. Liam was then changed to a different chemotherapy which proved unsuccessful in just the first 3 months of treatment. Somewhat fortunately, a proton radiation center had opened 10 days prior to Liam needing a new treatment. He started proton radiation in December of 2015. He had daily anesthesia/ radiation for 6 weeks. He completed treatment in January 2016. He has had 2 follow up MRIs which lead to more questions than answers. His chemotherapy port was removed August 2016. As of today his future is still uncertain. There are no further treatment options for Liam's tumor so if radiation did not "kill" the tumor he will not survive. He continues to grow and play and have a relatively normal childhood despite all he has gone through in his 4 years. He's my hero