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The short version of this: Bryce O'Brien is 16, is wonderful, and has a malignant bone cancer. And we will beat this, together.
In the summer of 2015, Bryce went on a kayak trip in West Virginia, where he usually spends his summers. While unloading a kayak Bryce hurt his back. At the time it wasn't too bad, but as the summer went on it got worse and worse - to the point where he had trouble walking and sleeping.
We had thought at the time that this was a somewhat atypical back injury. His doctor recommended therapy, we brought him into the ER, did xrays, blood tests - and nothing special was found. He continued to miss school and have problems being able to sleep or walk. This continued, on and off, for 6 months, despite following all medical advice. Bryce would sometimes be okay, sometimes be bad. Eventually one of his doctors indicated that this wasn't usual, and per their advice we got an consultation with a specialist who later indicated we should have an MRI.
The MRI revealed two meatball-sized tumors in Bryce's hip, surrounding his SI joint. They were found to be a type of malignant bone cancer called Ewing's Sarcoma . The reason he had been in such pain was because the tumor caused swelling and pressure against his spine and nerves, and the swelling would be reduced for a time with therapy. But only for a time. This is apparently not atypical behavior for this kind of tumor in this placement.
The tumors are, as far as we can tell, localized - meaning they have not spread to the rest of his body or done any other damage. Bryce has a very good prognosis for beating this and having a great life after. Bryce has now been in the Seattle Children's oncology treatment center program for the last two months, doing chemotherapy to reduce the size of the tumor prior to surgery. Assuming all goes well, the plan is for Bryce to have surgery in July to remove the tumors and repair the damage from the bone loss, and then continue chemotherapy through the summer until November. It all goes well he will be cancer-free at that point.
We are currently in the second month of treatment, and Bryce is doing great so far. Everything is going about as well as one can hope for. His pain has drastically reduced, he is responding well to the chemotherapy, and his spirits are high. We are very hopeful for a great, successful fight against this. Seattle Children's hospital is a phenomenal place, and he is getting the best care we could hope for.
While our insurance is thankfully covering the vast majority of the expenses there are countless small things that need to be covered beyond the deductible. We drive almost daily to the hospital, 30 miles away via toll road. We have to cover supplies, costs of foods, and, over summer, paying for day care or babysitters so that we can still work and do hospital stays while our other children are cared for. The cost of Bryce's fertility storage and treatments are also not covered, and they are expensive. We still don't know how much his schooling will cost and what it will take to have him graduate from high school and go to college.
What we've learned from this ordeal is that there are a lot of people out there willing to help and we are thankful for each and every one. We are intensely grateful to those in our lives who have not only asked how to help but have taken their time and energy to help us, often without our asking. Every small act of kindness makes a huge impact, every donation makes getting through this so much easier. Please do that for the people in your life too - whether it be us or someone else, show them you care by doing.
Our plan is to show precisely how the money is being used for Bryce's treatment, and if there is anything left over we will donate it to the hospital or a cancer charity to help other families in Bryce's name. I believe in being as transparent as possible. We will provide updates on how Bryce is doing, what he is going through and what our next steps are along the way.
And most importantly, we will win. Bryce will beat this.
Thank you very much for reading.
In the summer of 2015, Bryce went on a kayak trip in West Virginia, where he usually spends his summers. While unloading a kayak Bryce hurt his back. At the time it wasn't too bad, but as the summer went on it got worse and worse - to the point where he had trouble walking and sleeping.
We had thought at the time that this was a somewhat atypical back injury. His doctor recommended therapy, we brought him into the ER, did xrays, blood tests - and nothing special was found. He continued to miss school and have problems being able to sleep or walk. This continued, on and off, for 6 months, despite following all medical advice. Bryce would sometimes be okay, sometimes be bad. Eventually one of his doctors indicated that this wasn't usual, and per their advice we got an consultation with a specialist who later indicated we should have an MRI.
The MRI revealed two meatball-sized tumors in Bryce's hip, surrounding his SI joint. They were found to be a type of malignant bone cancer called Ewing's Sarcoma . The reason he had been in such pain was because the tumor caused swelling and pressure against his spine and nerves, and the swelling would be reduced for a time with therapy. But only for a time. This is apparently not atypical behavior for this kind of tumor in this placement.
The tumors are, as far as we can tell, localized - meaning they have not spread to the rest of his body or done any other damage. Bryce has a very good prognosis for beating this and having a great life after. Bryce has now been in the Seattle Children's oncology treatment center program for the last two months, doing chemotherapy to reduce the size of the tumor prior to surgery. Assuming all goes well, the plan is for Bryce to have surgery in July to remove the tumors and repair the damage from the bone loss, and then continue chemotherapy through the summer until November. It all goes well he will be cancer-free at that point.
We are currently in the second month of treatment, and Bryce is doing great so far. Everything is going about as well as one can hope for. His pain has drastically reduced, he is responding well to the chemotherapy, and his spirits are high. We are very hopeful for a great, successful fight against this. Seattle Children's hospital is a phenomenal place, and he is getting the best care we could hope for.
While our insurance is thankfully covering the vast majority of the expenses there are countless small things that need to be covered beyond the deductible. We drive almost daily to the hospital, 30 miles away via toll road. We have to cover supplies, costs of foods, and, over summer, paying for day care or babysitters so that we can still work and do hospital stays while our other children are cared for. The cost of Bryce's fertility storage and treatments are also not covered, and they are expensive. We still don't know how much his schooling will cost and what it will take to have him graduate from high school and go to college.
What we've learned from this ordeal is that there are a lot of people out there willing to help and we are thankful for each and every one. We are intensely grateful to those in our lives who have not only asked how to help but have taken their time and energy to help us, often without our asking. Every small act of kindness makes a huge impact, every donation makes getting through this so much easier. Please do that for the people in your life too - whether it be us or someone else, show them you care by doing.
Our plan is to show precisely how the money is being used for Bryce's treatment, and if there is anything left over we will donate it to the hospital or a cancer charity to help other families in Bryce's name. I believe in being as transparent as possible. We will provide updates on how Bryce is doing, what he is going through and what our next steps are along the way.
And most importantly, we will win. Bryce will beat this.
Thank you very much for reading.