Former USWNT star Lauren Holiday, right, will need brain surgery to remove a tumor after she gives birth to her first child this fall. (Photo Copyright Patricia Giobetti for The Equalizer)
Former U.S. women’s national team midfielder Lauren Holiday, who is pregnant, has a brain tumor which will require surgery after she gives birth, according to her husband, Jrue Holiday.
The tumor was discovered in June and is benign, Jrue tells nola.com. The tumor is not a threat to Holiday’s unborn daughter, according to Jrue, but the brain surgery will need to wait until after Holiday gives birth.
Holiday, 28, is a two-time Olympic gold-medalist and a 2015 World Cup champion. She retired last year after winning the World Cup at the peak of her career as she shifted focus in her life to her family. She is also a two-time National Women’s Soccer League champion and the league MVP in the inaugural season in 2013.
Holiday is due to give birth in mid-October, but the couple hopes to induce birth early to expedite her treatment, according to the report. Doctors plan to perform Holiday’s brain surgery about six weeks after she gives birth.
[MORE: Lauren Holiday says FC Kansas City changed her career]
Jrue, who is a point guard for the NBA’s New Orleans Pelicans, will miss an indefinite amount of time this season to take care of Holiday and the couple’s expected newborn.
“My family comes before basketball,” Jrue said. “I’m obviously blessed to play this game and be in the position I am in, but my wife is the most important thing in the world to me. She comes before anything else.”
Jrue is speaking for Holiday as she focuses on her health, nola.com reports.
“Obviously, we were and are still very excited about the birth of our first child, but our focus shifted from having this magnificent blessing to making sure everything is going to be OK with Lauren and the child,” Jrue said. “Our priorities right now are being able to manage Lauren’s symptoms and still have a fairly healthy pregnancy.”
Holiday, 28, is a two-time Olympic gold-medalist and a 2015 World Cup champion. She retired last year after winning the World Cup at the peak of her career as she shifted focus in her life to her family.
The couple met at UCLA, where Jrue played basketball and Lauren played soccer. They got married in 2013.
“Lauren has her good days and her bad days; some are better than others,” Jrue said. “She’s obviously a fighter, the toughest woman I know. That’s the reason why I married her.”
“We just ask for your prayers, really pray for my family,” Jrue said. “We can take all the prayers that we can get.”
