Last week, the Costa Rican surfing federation sent a press release informing that the ISA had accepted Brisa Hennessy's certificates to justify her non-participation in the ISA World Surfing Games.

Days later, Stab published an interview in which Hennessy details that a benign tumor was found in his brain.

According to her account in the interview, she began to experience “strange” symptoms, a foggy brain, a lack of clarity and motivation. “I experienced extreme fatigue that came from nowhere, especially in stressful situations, which were many.”

In Hawaii, where he finished and started the year, he had an MRI and they found the benign tumor in his pituitary gland.

According to him, all the symptoms were due to the fact that the tumor is precisely affecting the functioning of the gland that is essential in hormonal regulation.

“The pituitary gland is a small, casserole-sized gland located near the brain. It is part of the endocrine system, which regulates the body’s hormones. This gland is often referred to as the “master endocrine gland” because it releases hormones that affect many bodily functions,” writes the Cancer.net website.

Once she knew what was happening, instead of being scared, she said she felt relieved because she could no longer bear the uncertainty. “I was no longer afraid,” she said.

Regarding the treatment she has ahead of her, she said: “I am taking it step by step now. To be honest, the case has been much more complicated than we thought and we are talking to surgeons and different doctors. The surgery is more invasive than we originally thought so we are exploring different options. There are many questions and we will continue looking for doctors, but I have faith that we will find a way around it for sure. We must do it.”

Brisa gave the interview in San Francisco, where she was visiting doctors.

As a finalist in the 2022 WSL season, Hennessy received a wildcard from the institution to participate in the 2024 tour.

Hennessy has already qualified for the Paris Olympics.