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Young woman rides again to help raise awareness for brain cancer

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Windsor, Ont. -

Five years ago, Serina Timperio’s life changed forever.

“For a while I had seizures on a daily basis,”says Timperio. “I had 3 to 4 seizures per day.”

She was completing her fourth year of arts studies at Queens University, while started to experience head pain on her way to Kingston’s Market Square to catch the final Tragically Hip concert with Gord Downie.

The pain so bad that Timperio didn’t make it to the concert.

Days later, she would be diagnosed with a brain tumour.

“A lesion was found in the MRI and she was diagnosed with a malignant astrocytoma brain tumour,” says her father, Enzo Timperio.

The guitarist at that show, the Hip’s Rob Baker, first met Serina after seeing her art work at Queens.

“I was already a fan of hers, but when she told me her story, it just drilled down into my heart,” he says.

A story Baker knew all too well.

“DJ bought him enough time for Gord to do something that he found really important, that I think a lot of people found really important.”

He introduced the 26-year-old to neurosurgeon Dr. DJ Cook, the doctor who operated on Downie.

“He gave him a chance to tour back and fourth across the country and make eye contact with all those people that give us a career out of our imagination,” says Baker.

A chance came for Serina in 2020, having the same procedure as Downie.

“To create space to allow for agivant therapies including radiation therapy and chemotherapy and the third is to control seizure,” says Cook.

“We’re just so fortunate to have befriended him and have him as Serina’s surgeon,” says Timperio.

To give back, Timperio is using a passion she hasn’t been able to do in years.

“My seizures have gone down, and I decided to start riding again,” says Serina.

Riding at Ironstone Stables, covering approximately 618 kilometres, or the distance between Windsor and Kingston.

“We were excited for her, I was really happy to have her back. She’s always fun to have around. She’s got the sweetest personality so it’s nice to have her around the barn,” says Seana Holek.

The ride is to raise funds for Cook’s research into minimally invasive brain surgery. To date, she’s raised $16,000 for Dr. Cooks research.

“With the control of robotic arms to maintain and have the best possible visualization of the brain and tumours while we’re operating,” Cook tells CTV News.

She hopes to complete the ride by Oct. 24 - Brain Cancer Awareness Day.

“I think that those with brain tumours can do anything of which they really badly want to do.”

You can donate to Serina’s ride here.

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