The Struggle is Renal

"On Friday evening, Declan was admitted to the hospital after discovering blood in his urine, and subsequently, a tumor on his kidney. After a whirlwind of tests and agonizing amounts of waiting and wondering, we have an answer. The growth on his kidney is cancerous, a Wilms tumor, and he will be having surgery Monday to remove both the tumor and the affected kidney (the other is completely normal thankfully). As of now there is no evidence that the cancer has spread to other parts of his body. He will be in the hospital for a few more days post op then we will be heading home to continue recovery. He will begin his chemotherapy regimen a few weeks after surgery. 

Declan has been a champ so far and is taking everything in stride. We are amazed by his strength and resilience. These next few days, weeks, months are going to be rough but we have hope that this treatment will be curative and he will live a long and healthy life. But for now, one day at a time is the motto ❤️" 

Given that so many people have expressed interest in donating as well as keeping up with Declan's progress, using this platform made sense. All contributions will go directly to the Pappa family to cover additional expenses incurred during Declan's illness and hopefully to ease the burden of financial stress so that they can concentrate on being with him and getting him better.