Boy, 11, Deals With Rare Brain Aneurysm

LOS ANGELES - If there's one thing you should know about 11-year-old Tristan Gunson, it's that he loves soccer. But, for now, he is on the sidelines. He can't play anymore... at least not for a while.

Since he was six, Tristan has had headaches. And over the past few years, they were getting worse. Finally, he was diagnosed with a brain aneurysm that could have been fatal.

His father says it was terrible and if could have switched places with his son, he would have.

Dr. Neil Martin is the chairman of neurosurgery at UCLA. He said the miracle is that Tristan's aneurysm was discovered...because it's so rare in such a young patient.

Tristan needed major brain surgery but he wasn't going through it alone. When he had to shave his head, so did his family and friends...his soccer team...even his brother.

And the surgery was a success. Tristan survived an 18-hour operation, that included a brain bypass.

Even in ICU after the operation he stayed positive. The UCLA soccer team supporting him the whole way..even making him honorary captain for a game.

He won't be able to play soccer this year... maybe next. But in the meantime, he's got two teams cheering him on... this year, he'll just have more time to cheer back.

Dr. Martin believes the headaches were caused by the aneurysm but most of the time a person will have no symptoms with aneurysm until it ruptures.

If there are symptoms, they could include blurred vision, pain above the eye and speech problems...still, aneurysms in children are rare.