Craig Conlee is set to run the 48th Marine Corps Marathon in D.C. this weekend, but the California native was in a different place a year ago.
Conlee turned to running as part of his recovery after major surgery to remove a brain tumor a year ago.
For three straight months, Conlee said he experienced headaches and migraines, and during a family camping trip last year, he had an episode where he could not speak.
An MRI showed Conlee had a 7-centimeter meningioma brain tumor.
“So when it was removed, I couldn’t speak for a longest time,” Conlee told WTOP.
View this post on Instagram
His oncologist and speech therapist suggested that he start running and walking to help with his recovery from the surgery and radiation.
“Running really helped. It really helped to connect the neurons to improve my speech,” Conlee said. His speech is back to around 90% of what it was before the operation, he added.
It was a friend who suggested Conlee look into marathon training as a way to keep up with the rehabilitation and as a way to raise money for brain cancer research.
“I looked at the training regimen; I thought it was consumable for me. I thought was a big goal,” Conlee said.
It was also a good way to get his mind back into the swing of things.
“When you take a big thing out of your brain like that, a lot of things happen. I felt like smarter; I felt more efficient,” Conlee said. Moreover, he said he felt, “the old Craig’s back.”
When considering which race to choose for his first marathon, he thought about staying locally in California or heading to Chicago, but he landed on D.C. and the Marine Corps Marathon.
Both of his grandfathers, as well as one uncle, served in the Marine Corps.
“The Marines to me represent people that just grit it out, and they’re really committed,” Conlee said. “I felt like it was the right thing to do that. And the right motivation for me to target.”
Conlee is also raising money for his run for the American Brain Tumor Association. So far, he has raised nearly $2,500.
