The Keenans were having a typical day; Victoria Keenan, 35, was at the gym, while her husband, Nick Keenan, was out on business. Nick, on the other hand, returned home from his trip early and claimed that he was heading to the hospital. The devastating news he and his family received from their doctors irrevocably altered their lives. According to his wife, Nick’s physicians discovered a tennis-ball-sized lesion on the left side of his brain, precisely in the center of his frontal lobe.
Victoria added that the medical experts caring for her husband’s case informed her that the lesion had grown slowly and had most likely emerged when Nick was born. When Victoria arrived at the hospital, she recalled: “I knew something was wrong when I walked into the room and saw Nick crying.” Following the tragic news, Nick underwent surgery, followed by radiotherapy and chemotherapy, all of which were successful.
The couple saw this as a positive omen and proceeded with their intentions to start a family. They had twin daughters after undergoing IVF. However, Nick’s speech began to slur in December 2019, when their babies were just six months old.This prompted another trip to the doctor’s office after Christmas. Victoria noted that she had an uneasy feeling that the 2019 holidays might be the final time the family would be celebrating with Nick, therefore she had made a great deal out of the holiday season.
Three months later, the family discovered Nick’s tumor had grown into a glioblastoma, which are rapidly growing and spreading malignant cells in the brain that become exceedingly difficult to remove after they have spread to other parts of the brain. After being told he only had a year to live, Nick received extra rounds of treatment and was even evaluated for a clinical trial before his physicians told him there was nothing they could do.
Nick lost consciousness one night in November and was brought to a hospice, where he unfortunately died the next morning. “My parents dropped everything to look after the girls… and I slept in a bed in the same room as Nick at the hospice, head to toe with his mum,” Victoria said of his final moments. I suppose his last memory was of being at home with his family. He had no idea he had entered the hospice…
I got home at 6 a.m., washed, and continued to be a mother to our 17-month-old daughters, knowing that daddy was no longer with us.” Victoria characterized her adoring spouse as a solid support system for everyone who knew him, especially her. Nick, who is a very strong person, even continued to work during his radiotherapy and chemotherapy sessions.
Furthermore, he was able to completely support Victoria during their IVF trials.
According to his loving wife, Nick was an exceptionally unselfish person who always put others first and never made anything about himself, even when he was in the worst of condition. [T]hen Victoria is not busy being a devoted and loving parent to her twin kids, she concentrates her energies on Brain Tumor Research’s initiatives. The wonderful man had even been the one to console others who were saddened by his situation while fighting for his life.
Most importantly, Nick went to great lengths to ensure that he found a way to be there for his babies despite his inability to be physically present for them. Victoria revealed:
“He sent birthday cards to our daughters, Rose and Sophia, for the first 30 years of their lives.” He wished to be present in spirit with them while they celebrated their birthdays without him.”
Currently, the baby girls have opened four of the thirty birthday cards that their loving father has left for them. The fourth card references Nick’s daughters entering the stage where they will begin school, and advises them to look after each other. These cards Nick left for their girls, according to Victoria, will keep them close to their father and help them to get to know him. She went on to say:
“It will help them understand where he was at that point in his life.”During Nick’s illness, Victoria bought him a Daschund puppy to boost his morale and provide him with companionship. In an odd turn of events, the puppy, named Poppy, died six months after Nick died, also as a result of a brain tumor. Victoria commented on the coincidence: “I just couldn’t believe it; they were inseparable, and I think she was sent to look after him, so [she] went with him.”
Victoria now devotes her time to Brain Tumor Research campaigns when she is not busy being a dedicated and loving mother to her twin girls. She is cooperating with the organization’s campaign to collect 100,000 signatures in order to enhance research funding and spark a parliamentary debate.