Alex vs Brain Cancer
Donation protected
Meet Alexandros Hurdakis, one of the strongest and resilient little man we’ve ever met. He touches the lives of everyone he meets. Yet, Alex has had to fight harder in his first 3 years than most people will ever in their lifetime. However, this has not changed the power he holds to influence those he meets to appreciate all the beauty we take for granted each and every day!
This is his story…
Alex, was your typical baby doing all things a baby should be doing, meeting all his milestones and being the best little brother, his big brother Konstantinos could ever ask for. At 11 months old Alex became ill, his parents started off by taking him to the walk-in clinic, being told it was a virus and just to give it time, days later he still was unwell and his parents took him to their local hospital emergency department to only be told its viral and to give it time. At this point a week had gone by and Alex was not getting any better, so his parents made the trek to Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children hoping that they would get some answers and help their baby boy. Unfortunately, sick kids followed suit with the others and sent them away with a virus and time. This did not sit right for mom and dad (Kira and Nick) as they knew their baby and he was not acting himself. In desperation they contacted their pediatrician in Greece, as they had just immigrated to Canada roughly 2 years prior to Alex being born and still had a relationship with him. Their doctor in Greece gladly accepted a video call with them, took one look at Alex and advised them to go back to the hospital and demand a CT scan as he suspected meningitis, based on Alex’s symptoms and appearance. They did what any parent would do after being told this and drove to sick kids and demanded, almost to the point of having security called for a CT scan. The emergency doctors at sick kids finally gave in and performed several tests out of spite, to prove this family wrong, something that Kira and Niko would have gladly accepted! No one was prepared for the answer they received.
On May 3rd, 2018 Kira, Niko and Kostantinos’ life would change forever. Alexandros, was diagnosed with a epeudynoma brain tumor the size of a walnut and required immediate surgery to determine their next course of action.
The tumor was 95% removed however where it attached, on the brain stem was too risky to remove the entire thing. The rest remaining would hopefully be reduced with other courses of therapies such as radiation or chemotherapy. As if the news they received wasn’t bad enough the test results of the tumor came back 8 days later, and Alexandros was officially diagnosed with brain cancer on May 11th.
Alexandros started a very aggressive treatment of radiation in September, they managed to shrink the tumor but not to the point of disappearing. Complications from the surgery, along with the placement of the remaining piece of tumor has left Alex with many mountains to climb. He lives with a tracheotomy and eats from a g-tube and is on oxygen for a good portion of the day. They were told he would never walk; he would never talk; he would never eat orally, and the list goes on. They were also told that the tumor would likely grow back and for this reason they had to continue to monitor its growth with quarterly MRIs. Within a couple months of his last cancer treatment, they were able to say he was cancer free! Unfortunately, over the last 2 MRI’s the tumor has shown growth to the point that things need to be discussed with their team at Sick Kids on what the next steps are. We are praying and hoping for a miracle and the best outcome for this beautiful family.
Niko, Kira and family have fought so hard and have done so much of this journey on their own, refusing the help, to not feel like a burden. But they need us now, more than ever. Niko has lost his job before but this time they are homeowners, with a new mortgage they cannot afford for him to lose it again. We do not know for sure what the future holds for this family, but their fight is far from over. Their bills are piling up, between parking at sick kids, to hotel stays for early/overnight appointments at Sick Kids, because 2 adults need to be in the car with Alex, to expensive therapies that Kira has spent endless time researching and has proven to help him even if it was showed a slight improvement. To G-Tube equipment, to medical equipment rentals, to formula, to tracheotomy equipment, expensive medicine etc. etc.
This is where we need YOU! It is time for us to step up and support this beautiful family. To help ease their burden and help keep their focus on Alexandros’ fight and his future. We are calling out to our friends, families, networks and communities to help us in supporting our little fighter by whatever means possible. We cannot stress enough that while monetary support is both needed and appreciated, we would be blessed to be gifted complementary services for them as well.
Nothing stops this kid from lighting a room! He has proven them wrong many times over, he walks or runs sometimes, he plays with his siblings, he has since been promoted to big brother and welcomed a little sister in February of this year. He says words and gets his wants and needs across to both his parents. We are praying for the best outcome for Alex, and hope this is just another one of those times that he gets to prove them wrong! Until then, your prayers are appreciated.
#alexandrosstrong
Follow along with their story on FB: @superalexandros Insta: @Kira.Nik
Our heartfelt and sincere thanks.
xo
This is his story…
Alex, was your typical baby doing all things a baby should be doing, meeting all his milestones and being the best little brother, his big brother Konstantinos could ever ask for. At 11 months old Alex became ill, his parents started off by taking him to the walk-in clinic, being told it was a virus and just to give it time, days later he still was unwell and his parents took him to their local hospital emergency department to only be told its viral and to give it time. At this point a week had gone by and Alex was not getting any better, so his parents made the trek to Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children hoping that they would get some answers and help their baby boy. Unfortunately, sick kids followed suit with the others and sent them away with a virus and time. This did not sit right for mom and dad (Kira and Nick) as they knew their baby and he was not acting himself. In desperation they contacted their pediatrician in Greece, as they had just immigrated to Canada roughly 2 years prior to Alex being born and still had a relationship with him. Their doctor in Greece gladly accepted a video call with them, took one look at Alex and advised them to go back to the hospital and demand a CT scan as he suspected meningitis, based on Alex’s symptoms and appearance. They did what any parent would do after being told this and drove to sick kids and demanded, almost to the point of having security called for a CT scan. The emergency doctors at sick kids finally gave in and performed several tests out of spite, to prove this family wrong, something that Kira and Niko would have gladly accepted! No one was prepared for the answer they received.
On May 3rd, 2018 Kira, Niko and Kostantinos’ life would change forever. Alexandros, was diagnosed with a epeudynoma brain tumor the size of a walnut and required immediate surgery to determine their next course of action.
The tumor was 95% removed however where it attached, on the brain stem was too risky to remove the entire thing. The rest remaining would hopefully be reduced with other courses of therapies such as radiation or chemotherapy. As if the news they received wasn’t bad enough the test results of the tumor came back 8 days later, and Alexandros was officially diagnosed with brain cancer on May 11th.
Alexandros started a very aggressive treatment of radiation in September, they managed to shrink the tumor but not to the point of disappearing. Complications from the surgery, along with the placement of the remaining piece of tumor has left Alex with many mountains to climb. He lives with a tracheotomy and eats from a g-tube and is on oxygen for a good portion of the day. They were told he would never walk; he would never talk; he would never eat orally, and the list goes on. They were also told that the tumor would likely grow back and for this reason they had to continue to monitor its growth with quarterly MRIs. Within a couple months of his last cancer treatment, they were able to say he was cancer free! Unfortunately, over the last 2 MRI’s the tumor has shown growth to the point that things need to be discussed with their team at Sick Kids on what the next steps are. We are praying and hoping for a miracle and the best outcome for this beautiful family.
Niko, Kira and family have fought so hard and have done so much of this journey on their own, refusing the help, to not feel like a burden. But they need us now, more than ever. Niko has lost his job before but this time they are homeowners, with a new mortgage they cannot afford for him to lose it again. We do not know for sure what the future holds for this family, but their fight is far from over. Their bills are piling up, between parking at sick kids, to hotel stays for early/overnight appointments at Sick Kids, because 2 adults need to be in the car with Alex, to expensive therapies that Kira has spent endless time researching and has proven to help him even if it was showed a slight improvement. To G-Tube equipment, to medical equipment rentals, to formula, to tracheotomy equipment, expensive medicine etc. etc.
This is where we need YOU! It is time for us to step up and support this beautiful family. To help ease their burden and help keep their focus on Alexandros’ fight and his future. We are calling out to our friends, families, networks and communities to help us in supporting our little fighter by whatever means possible. We cannot stress enough that while monetary support is both needed and appreciated, we would be blessed to be gifted complementary services for them as well.
Nothing stops this kid from lighting a room! He has proven them wrong many times over, he walks or runs sometimes, he plays with his siblings, he has since been promoted to big brother and welcomed a little sister in February of this year. He says words and gets his wants and needs across to both his parents. We are praying for the best outcome for Alex, and hope this is just another one of those times that he gets to prove them wrong! Until then, your prayers are appreciated.
#alexandrosstrong
Follow along with their story on FB: @superalexandros Insta: @Kira.Nik
Our heartfelt and sincere thanks.
xo
Fundraising team (2)
Paula Anderson
Organizer
Brampton, ON
Nick Hurdakis
Beneficiary
Chrissa Tzouanakis
Team member
