Fight Like Zack
Donation protected
This fund is being setup to help out Zack Merrill and his family as Zack fights bone cancer. Below is Zack's story, as told by his father Matt.
For those who do not personally know Zack, he is 14yrs old, and is a Freshman at Lakota West High School in West Chester, Ohio. He is in his 3rd year of wrestling, and wrestles at the 120lb weight for the JV Team. Zack had a good start to the year, with a 9-3 record. This included two second place medals, and the "Hammer of the Week", from his team for the triple overtime match at Preble Shawnee.
Many people asked how the bone cancer was discovered. After practice prior to Christmas Zack complained about pain in his calf, and felt like he had pulled something. Later that day he said that he had hit his shin. We didn't think anything of it, but by the Friday after Christmas, 12/26, the shin was hurting more than the calf. We scheduled an MRI for Thursday, 12/30 with Beacon Orthopedics. At this point we thought that it may be a stress fracture.
On Tuesday 1/5 Becky, Zack, Caleb and Payton went to Beacon Orthopedics for the results of the MRI. It was at that point that Dr.Hamilton at Beacon shared that he thought it looked like Osteosarcoma. Specifically, a 9cm section of his right tibia appeared to be a tumor. It brought us to our knees, and honestly where we need to be for the next 6+ months.
Dr. Hamilton had already scheduled an appointment with Dr. Sorger, an Oncologist at Children's Hospital, for 1pm on Wednesday, 1/6. Dr. Sorger was less quick to diagnose it, but instead said that it was not clear, and would require a bone biopsy. at 6am on Thursday, 1/7, we were back at Children's for Zack's bone biopsy, which was performed by Dr. Patel. The initial feedback from Dr. Johnson, the radiologist, was that it was odd, in that the marrow and blood was being replaced by something. This gave us a level of hope that it was not osteosarcoma. They unfortunately would not have results until Monday at the earliest.
After a sleepless weekend, those hopes were dashed Monday, when a noon call from Dr. Sorger confirmed that Zack had Osteosarcoma. Later Dr. Pressey, another Oncologist with Children's called with additional perspective, and an overview of what to expect. We had to wait a day though, for tests and scans to begin.
Wednesday, we started the day at 10am with a meeting with another Oncologist at Children's Hospital, Dr. Pressey. We met with him and his team from 10:30 to 1pm, and they were great. We wanted them to be up front, and for Zack to hear it all. Some of it was very hard to hear, but the team was excellent in answering all of our questions. They also laid out the treatment plan for Zack, but first was a series of tests and scans. The key next step was ensuring that it had not spread further.
Osteosarcoma tends to show up in other areas as well, particularly the lungs. With the size of the tumor in Zack's tibia, this was a real concern. After the meeting with Dr. Pressey and the Team, Zack went for a CT Scan. That was followed by a PET scan. The goal of these was to ensure that that cancer was isolated to the tibia. On the drive home that evening, we had a huge Praise, with confirmation that the scans looked good, and the cancer appears isolated to the tibia. In addition, Dr. Pressey said that the tumor looked smaller than what the MRI showed., another Praise. It doesn't change the treatment plan, but we were ready for any good news.
Today, Friday, 1/15, we are down for additional tests and scans. For the Chemo to begin next week, they have to ensure that the heart and kidneys are functioning properly. Chemo can also cause hearing loss, so 8am was a hearing test. At 9am they did the first blood draw for the GFR, to check kidney function. At 10:30, they did a second blood draw and put in an IV. Currently we are waiting on the three more blood draws for the GFR, every 25min. At 12:30 Zack has a bone scan, I am not sure what that confirms beyond what the CT and PET scans provided. At 2:30 he has an Echo to confirm heart function. Please pray that these all come back normal.
The hardest part after hearing the news, is all of the unknowns. The positive news from the scan Wednesday, definitely lifted our spirits. Now we have a plan. I would be lying if I said that we are excited, but having a plan becomes so important.
Zack will start off with having a port put in for the Chemo next week. Currently this is planned for Tuesday, but we still need the confirmation from the hospital. The port actually sits under the skin, and taps into the aorta. The next day they will put in the 1st round of Chemo. He will likely stay overnight in the hospital, and be released on Thursday.
He will be on a 3 drug Chemo regimen. Two are typically done together, with the 3rd done the following week. It varies some, but this is the general idea. After 10wks of Chemo, they will perform the surgery on the tibia to removed the solid tumor. They will insert rods and who know what else (Grandpa offered up some of his duck tape and Gorilla glue) to bridge the gap in the bone. Zack will continue on Chemo for an additional 16 weeks after that.
If you are able to donate anything, it will be greatlly appreciated. We want to come together around Zack ,and his family, to try to ease the burden of a difficult time as much as we possibly can.
For those who do not personally know Zack, he is 14yrs old, and is a Freshman at Lakota West High School in West Chester, Ohio. He is in his 3rd year of wrestling, and wrestles at the 120lb weight for the JV Team. Zack had a good start to the year, with a 9-3 record. This included two second place medals, and the "Hammer of the Week", from his team for the triple overtime match at Preble Shawnee.
Many people asked how the bone cancer was discovered. After practice prior to Christmas Zack complained about pain in his calf, and felt like he had pulled something. Later that day he said that he had hit his shin. We didn't think anything of it, but by the Friday after Christmas, 12/26, the shin was hurting more than the calf. We scheduled an MRI for Thursday, 12/30 with Beacon Orthopedics. At this point we thought that it may be a stress fracture.
On Tuesday 1/5 Becky, Zack, Caleb and Payton went to Beacon Orthopedics for the results of the MRI. It was at that point that Dr.Hamilton at Beacon shared that he thought it looked like Osteosarcoma. Specifically, a 9cm section of his right tibia appeared to be a tumor. It brought us to our knees, and honestly where we need to be for the next 6+ months.
Dr. Hamilton had already scheduled an appointment with Dr. Sorger, an Oncologist at Children's Hospital, for 1pm on Wednesday, 1/6. Dr. Sorger was less quick to diagnose it, but instead said that it was not clear, and would require a bone biopsy. at 6am on Thursday, 1/7, we were back at Children's for Zack's bone biopsy, which was performed by Dr. Patel. The initial feedback from Dr. Johnson, the radiologist, was that it was odd, in that the marrow and blood was being replaced by something. This gave us a level of hope that it was not osteosarcoma. They unfortunately would not have results until Monday at the earliest.
After a sleepless weekend, those hopes were dashed Monday, when a noon call from Dr. Sorger confirmed that Zack had Osteosarcoma. Later Dr. Pressey, another Oncologist with Children's called with additional perspective, and an overview of what to expect. We had to wait a day though, for tests and scans to begin.
Wednesday, we started the day at 10am with a meeting with another Oncologist at Children's Hospital, Dr. Pressey. We met with him and his team from 10:30 to 1pm, and they were great. We wanted them to be up front, and for Zack to hear it all. Some of it was very hard to hear, but the team was excellent in answering all of our questions. They also laid out the treatment plan for Zack, but first was a series of tests and scans. The key next step was ensuring that it had not spread further.
Osteosarcoma tends to show up in other areas as well, particularly the lungs. With the size of the tumor in Zack's tibia, this was a real concern. After the meeting with Dr. Pressey and the Team, Zack went for a CT Scan. That was followed by a PET scan. The goal of these was to ensure that that cancer was isolated to the tibia. On the drive home that evening, we had a huge Praise, with confirmation that the scans looked good, and the cancer appears isolated to the tibia. In addition, Dr. Pressey said that the tumor looked smaller than what the MRI showed., another Praise. It doesn't change the treatment plan, but we were ready for any good news.
Today, Friday, 1/15, we are down for additional tests and scans. For the Chemo to begin next week, they have to ensure that the heart and kidneys are functioning properly. Chemo can also cause hearing loss, so 8am was a hearing test. At 9am they did the first blood draw for the GFR, to check kidney function. At 10:30, they did a second blood draw and put in an IV. Currently we are waiting on the three more blood draws for the GFR, every 25min. At 12:30 Zack has a bone scan, I am not sure what that confirms beyond what the CT and PET scans provided. At 2:30 he has an Echo to confirm heart function. Please pray that these all come back normal.
The hardest part after hearing the news, is all of the unknowns. The positive news from the scan Wednesday, definitely lifted our spirits. Now we have a plan. I would be lying if I said that we are excited, but having a plan becomes so important.
Zack will start off with having a port put in for the Chemo next week. Currently this is planned for Tuesday, but we still need the confirmation from the hospital. The port actually sits under the skin, and taps into the aorta. The next day they will put in the 1st round of Chemo. He will likely stay overnight in the hospital, and be released on Thursday.
He will be on a 3 drug Chemo regimen. Two are typically done together, with the 3rd done the following week. It varies some, but this is the general idea. After 10wks of Chemo, they will perform the surgery on the tibia to removed the solid tumor. They will insert rods and who know what else (Grandpa offered up some of his duck tape and Gorilla glue) to bridge the gap in the bone. Zack will continue on Chemo for an additional 16 weeks after that.
If you are able to donate anything, it will be greatlly appreciated. We want to come together around Zack ,and his family, to try to ease the burden of a difficult time as much as we possibly can.
Organizer and beneficiary
Tony Bradberry
Organizer
Hamilton, OH
Matt Merrill
Beneficiary