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'He couldn't move, speak or see': Woman says husband died weeks after tick bite led to deadly virus

A Brewer woman is sharing her story about how her husband, Henry Grover, died from the rare, tick-borne Powassan virus, hoping to spare others from the agonizing end-of-life decisions she faced.
Henry Grover was admitted to a Bangor hospital on March 4, 2022, while being treated for lymphoma; he declined rapidly and was transferred to Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, where he died on March 23, 2022, at age 61.
Patti Grover described her husband's condition as "like he was buried alive" in the hospital bed. She explained, "I had to choose to pull the plug," noting she would not wish that experience on anyone.
Maine reported a new case of Powassan within the last week, bringing the state's total to three this year, while cases reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are trending upwards nationally.
No vaccines or medicines exist to prevent or treat Powassan, but researchers at MaineHealth's Vector-Borne Disease Lab in Scarborough are studying the disease, which spreads through infected tick bites similar to Lyme disease.

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