Fernando Campos is an intelligent, articulate and kind, eleven year old who loves his family and his friends.  He loves and takes pride in his school, practices karate and every person who encounters him is greeted by the most heart-warming and genuine smile with the utmost respect. He loves the Golden State Warriors, and their motto, Strength in Numbers, has now become a symbol for him and his family as he battles this very rare cancer with all of us rallying at his side.

After a short bout of headaches and diplopia (double vision), what was supposed to be a routine exam leading to a pair of new eye-glasses, would actually result in a parent’s biggest fear and actually change the Campos Family forever, especially Fernando.  That day, June 16, 2015, two days before his11th birthday, he was diagnosed with a tumor at the base of his skull.

A full resection was necessary to both remove the tumor and allow pathologists to determine the type and grade.  A week after the full resection at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford, on July 10, 2015, it was determined that the skull base tumor, Clival Chordoma, is a stubborn and radio-resistant lesion requiring high radiation dosages for adjuvant treatment.   Not much is known about Chordomas except that sometimes they tend to recur at the initial place of incidence, later on in life - which is not a good thing at all.  It is so rare that the information and research that is available is minimal and not very accurate. With an incidence of 1 in 1,000,000 adults and 1 in 10,000,000 children per year, it is no wonder very little is known, especially about pediatric clival chordomas.  With that being said, the medical professionals agreed that the best chance for Fernando's survival was the full resection followed by radiation therapy.  Because the tumor site is in a very hard to reach area at the base of the skull on the clivus bone, surrounded by the brain, optic nerves, brain stem etc…, conventional radiation is not an option due to the increased toxicity and morbidity, to those very important structures. 

Therefore, the only true treatment option is Pencil Beam Proton Radiation, which greatly reduces the chances for side effects, reduced toxicity and morbidity and allows, more safely, higher radiation dosages, which are necessary to treat Chordoma (there no prescribed chemotherapeutic drugs for Chordoma).  There are still risks, however, those are greatly reduced.

Currently, there are only 11 Proton Centers in the United States of which none are in the San Francisco Bay Area.  The closest center to the family, Scripps Proton Center in San Diego, still requires the Campos Family to temporarily relocate close to 500 miles away from home (Concord, CA).

Proton Therapy is a must for Clival Chordoma.  Fernando will undergo 45 treatments (Monday thru Friday) of Pencil Beam Proton radiation over the course of 9 weeks.   

In spite of this journey, they all wear smiles on their faces, and are grateful because “things could always be worse – We see God’s blessings every day and we just want the Prayers to keep coming - We want God and his Angels and Saints to hear the Thunderous prayers from all of our Family, Friends, and Friends of Friends.”

Let’s rally around Fernando and his Family and help out any way we can. Proton therapy treatments are quite expensive (and insurance does not cover everything) as are the housing/living expenses in San Diego.  To say they are scared for their son and brother is an understatement.  Knowing they will never again know the “normal” prior to June 16, 2015, they count their blessings, every day and Fernando’s courage, with a smile, is nothing short of amazing.  Heroes do come in all sizes.  Sometimes we take for granted growing older, not realizing that it is a privilege denied to many.  Every gift that is donated will be met with the family’s sincerest gratitude and appreciation.  They know that the road ahead will not be a smooth one but your donation will be a beacon of hope for this family.  And for that, they are truly grateful!     

 
No Body Fights Alone - Strength in Numbers !!!