Baby Has Half of His Brain Removed to Treat Seizures

Dec. 30, 2010— -- Just short of one year old, Evan Stauff is a beautiful baby boy who gurgles and giggles like many others his age.

"He was born, I thought, much stronger than our other two sons when they started to develop," said Evan's father, Dave Stauff. "We kept saying, 'Wow, he is really developing quickly.'"

But now when Evan should be about to say his first words, his language development is lagging and he has trouble moving his right arm and leg. Even so, Evan is a medical miracle.

The little boy's rapid development stopped abruptly last April 1, April Fool's Day, an irony his family always mentions.

His mother, Kathleen Stauff, explained how terrified she was when she watched her son have his first seizure.

"I woke up to get up that morning and he was laying in the bed, having a seizure," she said. "I asked Dave to turn the lights on."

"At that point, I had never seen a seizure," her husband added. "To me, a seizure was like something you'd see on TV."

Evan's parents used a cell phone to capture video of their son that morning while he was seizing. His mother said Evan was non-responsive.