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Start fresh in your new home at Queens Avenue Retirement Residence Oakville Beaver | Thursday, August 17,2023 | 14 Ay Livita insidehalton.com IBNEWS ‘YOU JUST KEEP PUSHING’ FATHER DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER SHARES STORY OF STRENGTH ALEXANDRA HECK aheck@metroland.com Carl Faria is going to continue making goals for himself. Despite facing cancer, the Brampton father has trained to run a 30-kilo- metre race, and in June, he placed second in a power- cancer in 2021 when doctors found a tumour on his kidney. The Oakville Catholic school teacher had just signed off online learning with his students for the di lay. As he went to use the washroom, he noticed he couldn't urinate. He and his wife drove to Georgetown Hospital, where staff drained his bladder. "There were blood clots in my bladder," Faria said, adding that doctors kept him overnight and did an ultrasound, where they He wi 3 transferred to Oakville ‘and sent home with an appointment for a CT scan. Faria's_ wife, as talking to her high school friend, who works at University Hospital in Lon- "Faria w. transferret there quickly, where te by Dr. Patrick Luke, who told Faria the tumour on his kidney mea- sured 20 centimetres and they needed to do further testing to ensure it hadn't spread to his bones or brain. "He told me hehad stage four cancer," Amelia said, remembering the phone call she received from her Carl Faria photo After being diagnosed with cancer, Carl Faria has completed several goals that he made for himself, including running a 30-kilometre race and placing in a powerlifting competition. husband. "I was just dumb- founded." The couple were re- lieved to know the cancer had not spread to the bones or brain, but surgeons did have to remove his spleen anda portion of his pancre- as along with the kidney. "I woke up in ICU and I must have had five tubes coming out of my body," Fa- ria said, remembering how hard he worked to recover. "I never did the 'woe is me" he said. He finished up the school year with his stu- dent varia also works with people who have experi- enced traumatic brain in- juries and works shifts at Syl Apps Youth Centre in Oakville. le a pact with tried before. He took up running and completed the Around the Bay 30-kilo- metre race in Hamilton. "I love weights, I love to be strong," he said, explain- ing that his goal the follow- ing year was to compete i in He placed second at a meet on June 3 in Ancaster. Weeks later, Faria start- ed getting headaches. "I thought it was just uke a vertigo episode, i he aon the last day of school, Faria stopped at the drivi range to practice golf before going home. That's when he had a dizzy spell, went home and lay down. "I should have known better, that's not him," said ately concerned. He started vomiting the followi y, and they headed back to Geo! town Hospital. Faria told he had a four-to-five-centimetre tu- mour in his right cerebel- aa returned to London for surgery on July Faria wanted nothing more than to be discharged in time watch his twin sons' football tournament. While he couldn't gach in person, he tuned in and watched on the mide hom "I ‘told them to win it for dad. They did win," Amelia said. Now, Faria is going for walks every ning, joying coaching football drills with his sons and looking forward to school in the fall. “Since I've been diag: nosed, every year I've hada goal," Faria said, explain- ing that he chooses to focus on the positive aspects of life, to cherish every mo- ment. "I want my kids to see that it doesn't matter, you just keep pushing." The family is also mov- ing into a new home in Guelph. “My goal is to make them see that their dad is strong.’ he said. family friend has started a GoFundMe page to help them deal with the unexpected financial cl a power lenges tied