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Lauren Holiday: Former Soccer Star To Have Brain Surgery To Remove Tumor, Waiting Until She Gives Birth Before Surgery

By Louis Babcock
Published on: 12:11 PST, Sep 4, 2016

Lauren Holiday, a former U.S. soccer player, has a brain tumor that needs to be surgically removed. The tumor on Holiday’s brain is benign and does not pose a threat to her unborn child. Since the tumor is benign and not a threat to her baby, Us Magazine is reporting that Holiday has decided to hold off on having the brain tumor removed until she gives birth in the October to her first child, a daughter.

Lauren’s husband, Jrue Holiday, spoke with NOLA.com about Lauren, her benign brain tumor, and the pending birth of their first child.

“Obviously, we were and are still very excited about the birth of our first child, but our focus shifted from having this magnificent blessing to making sure everything is going to be OK with Lauren and the child. Our priorities right now are being able to manage Lauren’s symptoms and still have a fairly healthy pregnancy.

“Lauren has her good days and her bad days; some are better than others. She’s obviously a fighter, the toughest woman I know. That’s the reason why I married her.”

Earlier this summer, Lauren was having problems with headaches that caused her intense pain. She decided that the headaches were bad enough to warrant her making an appointment with a doctor. Lauren was given an MRI, and the cause of her intense headaches was determined to be caused by a brain tumor. The location of the tumor is on the right side of her brain near her eye.

After hearing the initial diagnosis, Lauren decided to get other medical opinions. Holiday saw a neurologist at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles, California, and another neurologist at Duke University Hospital in Durham, North Carolina. The brain tumor diagnosis was confirmed by both neurologists.

Obviously, getting news that you have a brain tumor is devastating, even if it is benign. Jrue is a member of the New Orleans Pelicans. He decided that he will take time off from his team to ensure that Lauren and their baby are cared for after the brain surgery. The couple came to the decision that Jrue will be the one to talk to the media so that Lauren can focus on recovering from giving birth and her brain surgery.

“My family comes before basketball. I’m obviously blessed to play this game and be in the position I am in, but my wife is the most important thing in the world to me. She comes before anything else.”

Dell Demps, the general manager of the New Orleans Pelicans, commented on the Holidays’ situation.

“We are all praying for a healthy delivery of their first child and a successful surgery for Lauren. Furthermore, we ask everyone to respect the Holidays’ privacy at this time.”

The head coach of the Pelicans, Alvin Gentry, also commented on the Holidays and expressed his support for them.

“The most important thing for Jrue to do right now is be with his wife and family. Every one of our coaches and players understands what Lauren and Jrue are going through, and they know we’re behind them 100 percent. We’ll continue to do everything we can to support them and help them get through these hard times.”

In addition to the support of her husband, Lauren’s fans on Twitter have been expressing their well wishes to Lauren.

[Photo by Craig Mitchelldyer/AP Images]

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