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Tufts Medical Center in Boston just called with my latest MRI results: There are two new masses on the right side of my brain the size of peas (about 8mm in size from residual growth), where the surgery was done. My options are to follow it and see if it changes in growth, MRI no sooner than six months, Gamma Knife radiosurgery or full-on open cranial surgery. Haha, yay."

The message arrives in text form from Josh Perry, a 27-year-old professional BMX rider about to enter the 2017 competition season. A week before, we had spoke on the phone for an hour about his life as a professional BMX rider currently living and training in Cary, North Carolina, and how he was aiming to push himself into a larger role as an advocate for nutritional health and positive thinking, working with brands outside of BMX to help expose larger audiences to the passion that he's devoted his life to.

A week later, the above message arrives. Ordinarily, the news has the potential to derail an entire day or year, let alone positive ambitions for the future. But Perry isn't like anyone I've ever met before. On top of all of the common injuries that accompany the life of a pro BMXer, this isn't Perry's first experience with masses in his brain. In fact, this is his third time.

Perry quickly follows up with another text message: "Just rode a morning session and rode just as well as I've been riding. Nothing has changed if I don't allow it to." This from a guy who has already had his skull cut open to remove a large tumor, while doctors stopped the flow of blood to his brain through an artery in his groin.

"If I didn't hit my head riding, I'd be dead."

Perry's history with brain tumors began in March of 2010.

Perry was attempting to learn a new BMX Park trick on a quarterpipe when he over-rotated and landed off the bike, crashing down on his shoulder and head. Although he was wearing a helmet, Perry decided to undergo an MRI because of the fear of traumatic brain injury. But this wasn't Perry's first bout with injury as a BMX professional. There were lingering, unanswered issues in his recent medical history. Throughout that past year, he had been experiencing periods of intense headaches coupled with bouts of temporary blindness. After repeated doctor visits and an attempt by doctors to get Perry on pain killers, nothing had been diagnosed.

Essentially, it took a BMX crash (the exact outcome Perry aimed to avoid) to get him to undergo a brain scan, and discover the source of his symptoms.

But the outcome of the examination was not anything that he had expected. "I wanted to get an MRI to make sure my brain wasn't swelling and the doctors told me 'Yeah, you have a large mass that shouldn't be in your brain and it's a tumor, and we're not sure it's cancerous or benign but it needs to come out.'"

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