Watch N.J. Woman Sing Taylor Swift Songs While Undergoing Brain Surgery
Taylor Swift
While Taylor Swift and brain surgery don't have a lot in common, they happened to come together in a very special way for a woman named Selena Campione.
Campione recently underwent surgery in which she had to stay awake to remove a brain tumor, and Swift's music kept her company—and tested her brain's capabilities throughout the procedure.
The mother of two opened up about the experience on social media, sharing a video of herself singing along to Swift's "Shake It Off" as doctors operated on her brain.
"I didn't know I was singing until I saw all these videos of me singing," said Campione in an interview with Fox News. "I felt nothing. I didn't know anything was going on. I didn't even know my head was open."
While she might not remember, her doctor, Dr. Nitesh Patel at Jersey Shore University Medical Center, recalled her also singing to "22," "Bad Blood," and more. He joked, "Basically, she did the Eras Tour for us."
As for why Swift's music was playing, it likely kept the mood up—but it also tested Campione's brain to give the doctors information as she reacted to areas they were operating on.
"She can talk, she can repeat things, tell us her name, etc. And while we're stimulating the brain, if she has any errors in those actions, we know that's a critical area," Patel said.
He noted that it's possible to do this by simply talking with the patient, "or we can do it a bit more of an exciting way, and I found singing is particularly very helpful."
Patel shared that he listens to Swift's music, and since the singer is also popular with Campione and her two young daughters, it was the perfect playlist choice for the surgery.
It seemed to work, and Campione told the publication she is "doing really well. I feel pretty normal, which is fantastic, because I wasn't able to say that for a long time now, and it was hard."
With any luck, Swift will see the video of Campione's surgery performance and get in contact with the devoted Swiftie as she recovers!
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