Eden Prairie family braces for long hospital stay after teen son’s emergency brain surgery

Fourteen-year-old Jacob Green was supposed to be getting a haircut.

It was April 18, the Friday before Easter. His stepmother, Lillian Green, had just picked him up around 11:30 a.m., planning for a normal weekend. Jacob usually looked forward to his haircuts. That day, he slid into the car and told her his head hurt.

What happened next led to emergency brain surgery, weeks in the hospital – and a call for help.

Lillian and her husband, Jake, have launched a GoFundMe campaign titled Support Jacob’s Emergency Brain Surgery to help cover mounting medical costs. As of Wednesday afternoon, the fundraiser had brought in just over $4,350 toward a $50,000 goal.

The Eden Prairie family is doing everything they can to support Jacob – a freshman at FAIR High School, an arts-focused public school in Minneapolis – as he faces a second major health crisis.

Lillian started asking questions — when did the headache start? Had he eaten? Slept? Drank water?

“Then I looked over and saw tears,” she said. “That’s when I knew something was wrong.”

Jacob lives in Richfield with his mother during the week. On weekends, holidays, and summers, he stays with Lillian, her husband Jake, and their baby daughter, Gigi, in Eden Prairie. Lillian is stepmother to both Jacob and his 19-year-old sister, Jada. Gigi, her daughter with Jake, is almost six months old.

With Jacob’s medical history – he underwent open-heart surgery in 2020 – Lillian didn’t hesitate.

She asked him if he wanted to go to the hospital. He said yes.

By noon, they were at Children’s Minnesota in Minneapolis. At first, Jacob was alert and talking. But by late afternoon, he was vomiting and slipping into lethargy. A CT scan revealed a cyst on his brain and a dangerous buildup of spinal fluid. Doctors tried medication to relieve the pressure, but it failed. His oxygen levels dropped to 54%. The plan to wait until morning for an MRI was scrapped.

“They told us, ‘If he lays flat during the MRI, he could pass away,’” Lillian said. “It was a blur. A nightmare.”

Emergency surgery was the only option. Neurosurgeons placed a drain in Jacob’s skull to relieve the pressure.

In a GoFundMe post, Lillian wrote: “If I hadn’t taken him in when I did, he might not be here today.”

The surgery saved Jacob’s life. But his condition remains serious.

Tests since the procedure revealed that all four of the valves in his brain – the ones that should naturally drain fluid – are blocked. One of them is located dangerously close to a major blood vessel, complicating the possibility of further surgery.

Doctors are now manually adjusting the pressure in the shunt to see what his brain can tolerate. Once they determine the right setting, they may attempt to place stents – but there’s no timeline.

“We’re just in a waiting period,” Lillian said. “It could be weeks. It could be months.”

Jacob now uses a CPAP machine at night to help him breathe. During the day, he’s stable but remains hospitalized. The family had hoped he’d be home by now. Instead, they’re preparing for an extended stay.

Jake, who works as a bartender, has taken significant time off to be at the hospital. Their baby daughter isn’t allowed in the ICU, so the family is constantly coordinating childcare, hospital visits, and work.

Despite everything, Lillian said Jacob remains “the same amazing kid” — brave, funny, polite, and resilient. She added he loves gaming and photography.

“He tries to act tough, like nothing can hurt him,” she said. “But he’s been through so much already. This is round two.”