Pro golfer with terminal cancer set to tee it up at Bermuda Championship
Brian Morris discovered almost two years ago that he had stage IV cancer in his stomach and esophagus, as well as tumours in his neck.
The inspirational story of Brian Morris is very much one that you read and then consider if the little things you worry about in life are worth your time.
As reported by Helen Rose of the PGA Tour, Morris was suffering from symptoms comparable to vertigo while working at Ocean View Golf Course in Devonshire, Bermuda.
He went to the doctors and in what seemed like no time at all, he was taken to intensive care and then he needed urgent brain surgery.
"The doctor, you know, he does that finger across your eyes, and you follow the finger," Morris recalls.
RELATED: MAN DIES AFTER TRYING TO RETRIEVE GOLF BALLS FROM LAKE
"One of my eyes was moving. One of my eyes was, he said it was like a jittery type of like jerking. And he was like, oh, boy.
"So, he gave me a CAT scan. We went from CAT scan to an MRI to intensive care to air ambulance to brain surgery on Monday."
Morris and his wife Laurie travelled to Boston's Dana-Farber Cancer Institute as the cancer needed to come out immediately.
He thankfully woke up from his brain surgery, having admitted he was terrified of what could have happened. But he was told on December 23, 2019 that his brain cancer was terminal and it had spread to his stomach and esophagus.
This week, Morris will tee it up in the Butterfield Bermuda Championship at Port Royal Golf Course and it is fair to say that he will have many, many people supporting him.
"I'm wondering like maybe I have this to help others. Maybe that's the plan, you know? Maybe I got it to show other people that, hey, you can fight this, man," Morris added.
"You could battle it because I could've laid down. I could've settled my affairs and just accepted that, hey, I'm going to die in six months. I believe my doctors 100 per cent, but I don't believe that.
"And here I am. Every day I get up, I'm so thankful. I get my breath and I just don't plan long-term. I plan my life in like three-month increments."
The 53-year-old had to stay in hospital for four days and he sadly missed Christmas with his family. But on New Year's Eve, his family and friends arrived at his door to celebrate the new year with him.
RELATED: WHAT WOULD YOU DO IN THIS TIGER WOODS PGA TOUR VICTORY SCENARIO?
For nearly two years now, Morris has undergone chemotherapy every three weeks. He is currently receiving an experimental drug and he will find out at Dana-Farber in December if it is doing the trick.
The drugs have taken their toll on his body and he developed neuropathy in his hands and feet. This means that he finds it hard to walk long distances.
Morris will have a buggy to use at the event this week and it seems that golf very much provides a happy place and a distraction from his illness.
"When I go to the airport, I have a hard time standing up for a half an hour. But I could play golf for four hours and I swear it's because of where I am when I'm playing," Morris said.
"I'm just thinking of how you make this shot and that shot. You know what I mean? So, I don't realize I'm tired until I play 18. And then I'm like pooped and I come home and take a nap.
"I'm going to enjoy people cheering for me. I'm going to enjoy people writing about me. And I just hope that (this) story and whatnot gets out there to people that have cancer or have a sickness that think that it's all doom and gloom, because it's not."
