Please give what you can to help alleviate some of the financial burden so Caden and his family can focus on receiving the very best care he can receive...
When Caden was 7 years old he was diagnosed with a brain tumor (non-malignant) the size of a lime in his left temporal lobe. He had his first major brain surgery May 10, 2002 to remove the tumor and within 2 months the tumor had grown back. Caden is now 22 years old and he received his 77th brain surgery this January. All of these surgeries have left him with hydrocephalus, epilepsy and debilitating migraine headaches. They found he was over draining CSF so dramatically that it caused a portion of his brain to herniate through the skull base. January, 2017, Caden and family members traveled to the Mayo Clinic in Arizona and the neurosurgens removed the shunt that was in place and are trying desperately to avoid another shunt placement. Recently his intracranial pressures have become elevated and Caden and family have had to travel back and forth frequently for follow up and possible re-shunting. Last week he was put on a new medication that has to be IV infused over a 4-5 day period and then every 6-8 weeks. After several treatments of this he will be able to receive this medication through injection at home. His first infusion was last week and he showed a great response to this medication. He actually woke up headache free for the first time in over 2 years . This effect only lasted a few days but Caden and family were ecstatic for this result.
Caden has received treatment at Primary Children's, Cleveland Clinic, University of Utah and most recently was accepted as a patient at the Mayo Clinic, in Arizona, by the country's top Neurosurgeon and Neurologist. His health has dramatically declined in the last year and a half, so the family's decision to seek treatment at the Mayo Clinic. Since November the family has made 14 trips to Phoenix for treatment. Caden has been in-patient most of these times having two additional surgeries, numerous spinal taps, MRI, and ICU admits. The medical bills are adding up along with air fare, transportation and lodging. The doctors have been amazing and have vowed that they are not going to give up so Caden shouldn't either...AND WE WILL NOT!!
Caden is an amazing young man and has a spirit like no other. He dreams of being a motivational speaker and to make a difference in others lives. During all of this, Caden has kept up with his college classes, worked and inspired all those around him that know and love him.