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UAE resident battles 'silent killer' disease, completes New York marathon

She was running to raise awareness about brain health and to prove that recovery is the beginning of a powerful transformation

In November 2023, Safa Srour was diagnosed with a brain aneurysm that could have killed potentially her. On Monday, just one year later, the Dubai resident participated in the New York marathon and completed her first ever 42km run. “It was the most exhilarating feeling,” she told Khaleej Times from New York. “Crossing the finish line of the marathon in the city I grew up in felt like a dream come true.”

Running to raise awareness about brain health and to prove that recovery is the beginning of a powerful transformation, Safa trained hard to get in shape for the marathon. It was especially challenging as running had never been part of her life prior to her health challenges. She was sponsored and trained by New Balance to make her dream a reality but she admitted it was challenging. "I am now running every morning but I cant push myself too hard so everyday is a learning experience," she said. "I am trying to find that balance now.”

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Safa’s is a story of sheer grit, determination and hard work. A content creator and fashion designer, Safa was busy with fashion week in October 2023 when she first began feeling migraines more severe than usual. “Once I was done with my busy schedule, I decided to get it checked out,” she recalled. “The doctor brushed it aside saying it was just a migraine compounded by the stress of fashion week. But something told me to request for a MRI.”

As soon as her MRI was done and she was walking out of the clinic, the doctor called her and asked her to come back. “I immediately knew it was not good news,” she said. “But I could not imagine how bad it was.”

The doctor gave her a grim prognosis. “I had a brain aneurysm and the size was 12 millimetres,” she said. The news was especially shocking to Safa as she had lost her father to a brain aneurysm almost a similar size, just five years prior to that. “It is called the silent killer because there are not many symptoms before an aneurysm ruptures. Only 20 per cent of people survive with a disability.”

Tough decisions

After receiving her prognosis, Safa could not bring herself to tell her family. Instead she reached out to her friends in New York. “I finished my undergraduate degree in Community Health and was applying to medical schools before shifting careers,” she said. “I worked in an emergency room so I had many doctors that I worked with. I sent them the MRI and the doctor said that I have to travel ASAP. That is when I finally told my family.”

The toughest decision Safa had to make was to decide the course of treatment. “We could do either an open brain surgery or another procedure which goes through the main arteries,” she said. “So even for the doctor it was a big decision because they needed to weigh which was better for me as a young adult. It took almost two weeks to decide and the doctor opted to go for the surgery through the arteries. It was the same surgery during which my father dies so it was incredibly scary for all of us.”

Spread the message

Safa said her doctors warned her that a number of complications including paralysis of one side of her face could occur during the surgery. However, the procedure went smoothly and Safa recovered well. “I have two more aneurysms in my brain that the doctors will continuously monitor,” she said.

After her procedure, her brother also had a pre-emptive scan which showed that he too had some brain aneurysms. That is when Safa decided to raise awareness about the condition. “I really wanted to tell people to please check themselves out and maybe they can prevent it,” she said. “So that was very, very important to me. Maybe if my dad got the chance to know about it prior to rupturing, it that could have saved his life.”

Safa admitted that training for the marathon was challenging. “I wanted to push myself but I also had limitations,” she said. “I can’t have my heart rate or blood pressure too elevated so it was hard to find that balance. I need to understand my pace and that's what I want to communicate to people that you need to learn about yourself and your limitations. One day, I even had to call the emergency one day after a particularly gruelling run which took a toll on my body.”

Despite the challenges, Safa said she is determined to continue running. “I can really feel the shape of my body shifting with running,” she said. “I love my carbs and with running I could eat as much as I want. But more than anything, I enjoy the community. There are running clubs and even when you go to the park or track, there are people running with you. It is an amazing community.”

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