Mom’s Brain Cancer Diagnosis Follows Dismissal of Arm Tingling as Anxiety

Kelsey Stokstad, a stay-at-home mom from Madison, Wisconsin, initially experienced numbness and tingling in her left arm and hand, which doctors attributed to anxiety. She was later diagnosed with brain cancer.

Stokstad underwent surgery to remove 98% of the tumor, and a biopsy confirmed she had a grade 3 astrocytoma with an IDH1 mutation—a cancerous brain tumor. She completed 33 rounds of radiotherapy and 12 rounds of chemotherapy in January 2025 and now requires MRI scans every four months to monitor the cancer’s growth.

Reflecting on her experience, Stokstad said, “I started feeling numbness and tingling in my left hand and arm.”

The mom-of-one underwent 33 rounds of radiotherapy and 12 rounds of chemotherapy to treat a cancerous brain tumor.

Reflecting on the early stages of her illness, Kelsey Stokstad said, “It was very unnerving. I thought it was heart-related, so I went to the ER, but when I arrived, the symptoms stopped—it was very confusing. The doctors thought it could be anxiety-related, which I feel is a common misdiagnosis for women. I was given a beta blocker, which didn’t do anything because the numbness and tingling continued.”

After initially experiencing numbness and tingling in her left arm, doctors sent Stokstad home with beta blockers, but the symptoms persisted. Four months later, in August 2023, while working alone, she suffered a grand mal seizure.

“I noticed the numbness and tingling were starting to radiate toward my leg,” Stokstad recalled. “I was on the phone with my husband at the time, and the next thing I knew, I was on the floor. My husband was screaming my name. It must have been five minutes where I wasn’t answering. I had a grand mal seizure. When I came around, I was so confused.”

Her husband, Sean, 33, a business consultant, drove her to Meriter Hospital in Madison, Wisconsin, where a CT scan revealed a 4cm mass on her brain. A few days later, on August 17, 2023, doctors performed a craniotomy and removed 98% of the tumor, which was sent for biopsy.

After experiencing a grand mal seizure, Stokstad’s husband, Sean, drove her to Meriter Hospital in Wisconsin, where a CT scan revealed a 4cm mass on her brain.

Stokstad recalled, “Doctors told me that the numbness and tingling I had been experiencing were actually small seizures. My tumor had grown large enough that it was pressing on my brain. I was then admitted for immediate surgery, where they were able to remove 98 percent of the tumor—which was incredible.”

In September 2023, Stokstad was diagnosed with brain cancer. A further biopsy revealed that her astrocytoma carried an IDH1 mutation, meaning it was less aggressive and slower-growing.

Stokstad recalled her initial reaction: “I was just in shock; I couldn’t believe this was happening to me. I was thinking of my daughter, Raya, who is three, and how I didn’t want her to grow up without a mom. Initially, they told me my prognosis was three to five years, which was really hard.”

“We then found out that due to the mutation, my prognosis was 12 to 15 years and when they told us that, we were so happy.

“This is all still really hard, but I am grateful to be here and hopeful in my journey.”

Stokstad underwent egg retrieval for IVF in case Stokstad and Sean wanted to grow their family in the future.

She finished radiotherapy and chemotherapy in January 2025.

Stokstad completed her radiotherapy and chemotherapy in January 2025.

“Since then, my scans have been stable. I have had some swelling, but nothing to be concerned about,” she said.

She will continue to undergo MRI scans every four months, with her next scan scheduled for December 8, 2025. If the results are stable, Stokstad and her husband, Sean, plan to start IVF and expand their family early next year.

Stokstad shared, “If it is stable, my oncologist has cleared us to start IVF. We are so excited. I’m nervous, but excited. We will be able to start growing our family from early next year, and we can’t wait.”