Support this fundraiser
On behalf of Matthew Haynes, Abigail Haynes and family.
This page is not intended solely for financial reasons. It may also serve as a platform for those to show love and support to baby Rowan and those who go above and beyond to care for him. Those who choose to support through V E N M O: @mwhaynes
Our fight with cancer: Our son, Rowan, was diagnosed with stage III Ganglioneuroblastoma at 15 months of age on March 2nd, 2018. An intermixed mass of cancerous and benign cells forming a tumor larger than a grapefruit was growing in his pelvis out toward his abdomen. After two cycles of chemotherapy, the cancer was unresponsive and the only treatment left was surgery. On April 26th, the amazing surgical staff at Miller Children’s Hospital in Long Beach was able to perform a miracle. They took out 90% of the mass even though it was incasing his aorta and inferior vena cava. While considered overly successful, they could not safely remove the mass inside his spinal column and sacrum.
Our fight isn’t over: While the best possible outcome was achieved during surgery, our battle with cancer is far from complete. Depending on the type of tissue that still remains in his body and how well he recovers from surgery, he will still need a lot of treatment. He might need additional chemotherapy and maybe even radiation. Rowan will eventually need physical, occupational, and speech therapy to catch up on his milestones. Our oncology team estimates that his treatment will take anywhere from 6-12 months; we have been in the pediatric intensive care unit for only two months so far. As of April 28, 2018, he is still fighting hard in the surgical recovery stage of his treatment roadmap.
Why we need your support: Plainly stated, we want to be able to ensure Rowan is being well taken care of. We also want to be able to support those who go out of their way to care for him. Rowan requires us to be by his side at all times in the hospital so we won’t be actively earning income. These donations will help us maintain his care and comfort. My awesome employer has given my family so much already, but those amazing benefits cannot last forever. All monies donated will be used for the treatment, care, comfort, and support of Rowan and those who care for him.
For more detailed information on our son’s condition and treatment, scroll down for the whole story.
The Haynes Family thanks you from the bottom of our hearts!
Feel free to contact me at [email redacted] or [email redacted]

The Story: We took Rowan to our pediatrician on March 1st, 2018 because he was being extremely fussy during the past week. He wouldn’t eat, sleep, or crawl. Rowan would just whimper instead. We thought it was an ear ache and teething but our doctor was more concerned about how bloated his belly was. She ordered tests: blood, stool, and an ultrasound. Later that evening around 7 o’clock, we got a call from her telling us to go to the ER because Rowan's lab results were extremely abnormal. Most notably, his calcium was >15mg/dL (Severe hypercalcemia). That trip to the ER would change our lives forever.

Soon after we get to the ER, an abdominal ultrasound revealed that he had a huge mass growing in his belly. We were admitted to the Pediatric ICU. From there, as if almost on cue, he started to developed severe diarrhea. He would end up losing about 3 to 4 liters of stool everyday. Confounded by what could be causing the stooling, the PICU team could only treat the extreme electrolyte imbalances and dehydration until the MRIs would reveal what was truly inside. After a week, the MRI was presented to us by the pediatric oncology team. The mass was a lot larger than expected and appeared to be growing from his sacrum to his belly button; it was 12x10x12cm. It was compressing his stomach and bladder, and pushing his intestines toward his ribs. Tumor and bone marrow biopsies needed to be taken in order to give us a definitive diagnoses. Our worst fears came to fruition.

The diagnosis was Ganglioneuroblastoma: Stage III Cancer. It is a very rare cancer that has benign and malignant growths intermixed. The cancer was also emitting a hormone (vasoactive intestinal polypeptide) that caused him to have severe diarrhea; even if he had nothing to eat or drink, he would still have watery stool. At the time, the edpidemiologists thought the dysentery was from a contagious disease, so Rowan was put on isololation for most of the time. In essence, he was forced to stay in his crib for weeks, which was horrible. The diarrhea posed a huge challenge because it resulted in Rowan having his blood tested every four hours so that they could replace his electrolytes and fluids. Eventually, he had to have a semi-permanent central line placed under his collar bone for easy access to blood and meds. He also had a feeding tube inserted through his nostril.

The plan of attack was to have two cycles of chemotherapy then check to see if the tumor had shrunk. Surgery would have been the first option but the surgical team was worried that the tumor was too vascular (bloody) and chemotherapy would hopefully kill some of the vasculature. So, we treated the cancer with two rounds. A total of 42 days worth of inpatient therapy in the pediatric oncology ward. Eventually, Rowan's instability would bring us back to the Pediatric ICU where we would call home for most of the stay. They treated him as well they could.

After the first round of chemotherapy, preliminary signs indicated that the tumor was not shrinking and everything we did to slow the stooling wasn't working. We continued to give his second round of chemotherapy with different drugs to ensure that we covered all angles. After many blood transfusions, anti-nausea/pain medications, and diaper changes later, we finally take another MRI to see the results of chemo. In short, the results were not good. The MRI indicated that the tumor was unresponsive and actually grew just a few CMs. This was a hard pill to swallow. What was even more devastating was the MRI revealed that the tumor mass was incasing the two main arteries from the heart. The tumor was also being fed blood by three other arteries. This news was devastating to us. The only bright side was that flu restrictions were lifted and Rowan’s big sister, McKenzie, got to see him for the first time after two months.

The remaining treatment was surgery; to get as much of the mass out of him as possible. The problem was that removing the mass could be lethal and that only 50% could be taken out safely. On April 26, 2018 Rowan endured a 6.5 hour surgery that required every pediatric surgeon in the hospital. We were told that 5 surgeons worked simultaneously on him. We were blessed and relieved that a miracle was performed that day and 90% of the tumor was removed. Everyone's prayers and support and love and kindness were answered. Tears of joy were shed by family, nurses, and doctors alike that day. But our battle is far from over. Only a few days into his recovery we are seeing the struggle that remains. He has a long road ahead with treatment to follow.

We will keep you all updated!
Thank you from the very bottom of our hearts.
This page is not intended solely for financial reasons. It may also serve as a platform for those to show love and support to baby Rowan and those who go above and beyond to care for him. Those who choose to support through V E N M O: @mwhaynes
Our fight with cancer: Our son, Rowan, was diagnosed with stage III Ganglioneuroblastoma at 15 months of age on March 2nd, 2018. An intermixed mass of cancerous and benign cells forming a tumor larger than a grapefruit was growing in his pelvis out toward his abdomen. After two cycles of chemotherapy, the cancer was unresponsive and the only treatment left was surgery. On April 26th, the amazing surgical staff at Miller Children’s Hospital in Long Beach was able to perform a miracle. They took out 90% of the mass even though it was incasing his aorta and inferior vena cava. While considered overly successful, they could not safely remove the mass inside his spinal column and sacrum.
Our fight isn’t over: While the best possible outcome was achieved during surgery, our battle with cancer is far from complete. Depending on the type of tissue that still remains in his body and how well he recovers from surgery, he will still need a lot of treatment. He might need additional chemotherapy and maybe even radiation. Rowan will eventually need physical, occupational, and speech therapy to catch up on his milestones. Our oncology team estimates that his treatment will take anywhere from 6-12 months; we have been in the pediatric intensive care unit for only two months so far. As of April 28, 2018, he is still fighting hard in the surgical recovery stage of his treatment roadmap.
Why we need your support: Plainly stated, we want to be able to ensure Rowan is being well taken care of. We also want to be able to support those who go out of their way to care for him. Rowan requires us to be by his side at all times in the hospital so we won’t be actively earning income. These donations will help us maintain his care and comfort. My awesome employer has given my family so much already, but those amazing benefits cannot last forever. All monies donated will be used for the treatment, care, comfort, and support of Rowan and those who care for him.
For more detailed information on our son’s condition and treatment, scroll down for the whole story.
The Haynes Family thanks you from the bottom of our hearts!
Feel free to contact me at [email redacted] or [email redacted]
The Story: We took Rowan to our pediatrician on March 1st, 2018 because he was being extremely fussy during the past week. He wouldn’t eat, sleep, or crawl. Rowan would just whimper instead. We thought it was an ear ache and teething but our doctor was more concerned about how bloated his belly was. She ordered tests: blood, stool, and an ultrasound. Later that evening around 7 o’clock, we got a call from her telling us to go to the ER because Rowan's lab results were extremely abnormal. Most notably, his calcium was >15mg/dL (Severe hypercalcemia). That trip to the ER would change our lives forever.
Soon after we get to the ER, an abdominal ultrasound revealed that he had a huge mass growing in his belly. We were admitted to the Pediatric ICU. From there, as if almost on cue, he started to developed severe diarrhea. He would end up losing about 3 to 4 liters of stool everyday. Confounded by what could be causing the stooling, the PICU team could only treat the extreme electrolyte imbalances and dehydration until the MRIs would reveal what was truly inside. After a week, the MRI was presented to us by the pediatric oncology team. The mass was a lot larger than expected and appeared to be growing from his sacrum to his belly button; it was 12x10x12cm. It was compressing his stomach and bladder, and pushing his intestines toward his ribs. Tumor and bone marrow biopsies needed to be taken in order to give us a definitive diagnoses. Our worst fears came to fruition.
The diagnosis was Ganglioneuroblastoma: Stage III Cancer. It is a very rare cancer that has benign and malignant growths intermixed. The cancer was also emitting a hormone (vasoactive intestinal polypeptide) that caused him to have severe diarrhea; even if he had nothing to eat or drink, he would still have watery stool. At the time, the edpidemiologists thought the dysentery was from a contagious disease, so Rowan was put on isololation for most of the time. In essence, he was forced to stay in his crib for weeks, which was horrible. The diarrhea posed a huge challenge because it resulted in Rowan having his blood tested every four hours so that they could replace his electrolytes and fluids. Eventually, he had to have a semi-permanent central line placed under his collar bone for easy access to blood and meds. He also had a feeding tube inserted through his nostril.
The plan of attack was to have two cycles of chemotherapy then check to see if the tumor had shrunk. Surgery would have been the first option but the surgical team was worried that the tumor was too vascular (bloody) and chemotherapy would hopefully kill some of the vasculature. So, we treated the cancer with two rounds. A total of 42 days worth of inpatient therapy in the pediatric oncology ward. Eventually, Rowan's instability would bring us back to the Pediatric ICU where we would call home for most of the stay. They treated him as well they could.
After the first round of chemotherapy, preliminary signs indicated that the tumor was not shrinking and everything we did to slow the stooling wasn't working. We continued to give his second round of chemotherapy with different drugs to ensure that we covered all angles. After many blood transfusions, anti-nausea/pain medications, and diaper changes later, we finally take another MRI to see the results of chemo. In short, the results were not good. The MRI indicated that the tumor was unresponsive and actually grew just a few CMs. This was a hard pill to swallow. What was even more devastating was the MRI revealed that the tumor mass was incasing the two main arteries from the heart. The tumor was also being fed blood by three other arteries. This news was devastating to us. The only bright side was that flu restrictions were lifted and Rowan’s big sister, McKenzie, got to see him for the first time after two months.
The remaining treatment was surgery; to get as much of the mass out of him as possible. The problem was that removing the mass could be lethal and that only 50% could be taken out safely. On April 26, 2018 Rowan endured a 6.5 hour surgery that required every pediatric surgeon in the hospital. We were told that 5 surgeons worked simultaneously on him. We were blessed and relieved that a miracle was performed that day and 90% of the tumor was removed. Everyone's prayers and support and love and kindness were answered. Tears of joy were shed by family, nurses, and doctors alike that day. But our battle is far from over. Only a few days into his recovery we are seeing the struggle that remains. He has a long road ahead with treatment to follow.
We will keep you all updated!
Thank you from the very bottom of our hearts.