Baby Angel Torres
Donation protected
A message from Cynthia Villagran, baby Angels mom.
On March 23, 2016, our one year old baby boy was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. The "most common form of childhood cancer". We were given the survival statistics (95% of kids treated are cured) and sent home after a 2 week stay at the hospital. What followed was doctor visits and chemo twice a week, anywhere between 5 and 8 daily medications, isolation from any public spaces and sick family members, and a couple hospitalizations that following year. When those first few months were done, "maintenance" began, which included, monthly check-ups and chemo, and some more isolation. One year into maintenance in March 2018, on a regular check-up, they told us it was back, and we rushed to the hospital. I had never seen him so sick in my life. He wasn't walking, he stopped talking and eating, and he just laid in bed. One month into treatment, the doctors told us they would be using a new treatment, immunotherapy, because he wasn't responding to chemo and he had no bone marrow donor. He received his CAR T cells on June 7, 2018, and we thought, this is it, this is our cure. And that was the first time Angel really got to be a normal kid. Unfortunately, that happiness only lasted 6 months. It's hard to condense EVERYTHING my son has gone through. No child should have to go through this, no parent should have to put their child through this treatment. We were admitted February 25, 2019 to start chemo immediately to get Angel into remission and straight to bone marrow transplant. 2 weeks into treatment, the cells came back, so then another round of chemo started, and the day we were going home, they told me they were seeing the cells come back again. We are back in the hospital for the very last round of chemo they are able to give him. Our only option after this is hospice/ home care. I refuse to give up!
We have found doctors outside this country that are still willing to treat him. That means uprooting our family and paying out of pocket for the treatment that could save him. We need your help, any little bit helps! Just sharing this makes a big difference. Thank you so much for your time and God bless.
On March 23, 2016, our one year old baby boy was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. The "most common form of childhood cancer". We were given the survival statistics (95% of kids treated are cured) and sent home after a 2 week stay at the hospital. What followed was doctor visits and chemo twice a week, anywhere between 5 and 8 daily medications, isolation from any public spaces and sick family members, and a couple hospitalizations that following year. When those first few months were done, "maintenance" began, which included, monthly check-ups and chemo, and some more isolation. One year into maintenance in March 2018, on a regular check-up, they told us it was back, and we rushed to the hospital. I had never seen him so sick in my life. He wasn't walking, he stopped talking and eating, and he just laid in bed. One month into treatment, the doctors told us they would be using a new treatment, immunotherapy, because he wasn't responding to chemo and he had no bone marrow donor. He received his CAR T cells on June 7, 2018, and we thought, this is it, this is our cure. And that was the first time Angel really got to be a normal kid. Unfortunately, that happiness only lasted 6 months. It's hard to condense EVERYTHING my son has gone through. No child should have to go through this, no parent should have to put their child through this treatment. We were admitted February 25, 2019 to start chemo immediately to get Angel into remission and straight to bone marrow transplant. 2 weeks into treatment, the cells came back, so then another round of chemo started, and the day we were going home, they told me they were seeing the cells come back again. We are back in the hospital for the very last round of chemo they are able to give him. Our only option after this is hospice/ home care. I refuse to give up!
We have found doctors outside this country that are still willing to treat him. That means uprooting our family and paying out of pocket for the treatment that could save him. We need your help, any little bit helps! Just sharing this makes a big difference. Thank you so much for your time and God bless.
Organizer and beneficiary
Jennifer Torres
Organizer
Mesa, AZ
Cynthia Villagran
Beneficiary
