Stryper guitarist Oz Fox was hospitalized on Thursday, October 22nd, 2020 after suffering a major seizure. He was put on an anti-seizure medication following the episode and plans were made for Fox to undergo brain surgery for two tumors that were first discovered in August 2018.
Fox underwent the first of two planned surgeries on March 4th. His wife Annie shared the following update on the surgery and condition:
Update on Oz Fox for Sunday. News news news Wrap is off his head! Walking! (picture below)
It was a beautiful Sunday! Of course Oz is in great spirits, hope filled attitude & excited to get out of the hospital. BUT not yet…Dr. wants to watch over him for a few more days.
I took OZ on a long walk today for therapy, and also went with him to walk up & down the stairs with his physical therapist. He did so good!
We have a few things to share:
- No infection of the brain so far—YAY!
- Swelling of the brain: Odd things happened today when oz got up out of bed. His left side felt like it wasn’t there. This is definitely a result of the operation & swelling.
- Throat continues to give him problems due to the other existing tumor, the acoustic neroma. This might be due to swelling as well. His throat continues to need to be cleared like there is flem in it. Prayers for this please.
- Hiccups: almost half of the day for the past few days, poor Oz has been having severe hiccups that refuse to go away. Dr. thinks this may be due to breathing tube nerve damage. Need prayers for this. It’s hard to sleep with hiccups!
But despite all of this—we are all happy he is alive & in his right mind! Thankful he is here with us & he made it!
Watching him inspires me personally. He is like a warrior that refuses to quit. How does he do it?! I asked him and he said “One God given breath at a time.”
Amen.
Thank you so much for your prayers, thoughts and warm wishes. We love you.
💖💜💙Annie
Frontman Michael Sweet checked in with the following update prior to Fox‘s surgery:
“Hi friends – the online store has just rolled out three versions of an Oz Fox T you’re gonna need. Two soft ringspun cotton Ts and an old-school baseball T, printed with eco-friendly water based discharge ink, these Ts have a great vintage feel. And what makes these shirts even cooler: all proceeds go directly to Oz!
As many of you know, my lifelong friend and bandmate is going in for brain surgery very soon. To help with the enormous medical bills associated with this surgery, we have launched 3 Oz Fox T-shirts in the Stryper store as part of an overall fundraising effort. Please consider picking up one, or more, of these cool exclusive shirts. Also – if you want to donate more than the shirt cost, you can do so when checking out and 100% of the money will go to Oz. And most importantly, please join us in continued prayers for him.”
Go to Stryper‘s official merch store here.
