Tenley and Boo

 A special Thank You! to the organizers of the Bengal Triathlon who donated their proceeds to Idaho Fighters!  

Thank You So Much!!

Meet a Few of Idaho's Fighters
If you have a child who is fighting or has fought cancer we would love to do a spotlight on your fighter! 
Contact Amy (Ty's mom) for more information.

Boo

Boo was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor that has spread into his spinal cord.  He was treated with chemotherapy, radiation and a bone marrow transplant from February 2011 through December 2011.  After completing his road-map he had scans scheduled for every 3 months.  He had his first 3 month scan on April 2nd and they found that the cancer came back.  He has another brain tumor and it has already spread to his spinal cord.  On April 11th 2012 he had a central line placed to start chemotherapy again.  Boo is a super sweet happy 6 year old who is in for the fight of his life.

 

It is with broken hearts that we let you know that our sweet cancer buddy Boo was called to heaven February of 2013.

 

We echo what Boo's friend said to Boo's mom:

"I feel so honored to have had Boo in my life.  You are an amazing mama who knows sacrifice as no others can. I love you and am thinking about all of you today.

Today there are no more pokes, headaches or back pain. 

TODAY HE PLAYS BASEBALL IN HEAVEN, AND RUNS AND IS NOT TIRED..."

Cooper

Cooper is a 5 year old who was diagnosed in March 2011 with PNET (Peripheral Neuroectodermal Tumor) which is a form of Ewing's Sarcoma and is very rare in young children.  He received chemotherapy from March 2011 until December 2011.   Cooper was constantly in the hospital last year whether for a week of chemo or for a recovery stay at the local hospital.  He will have scans and tests every 3 months for 3 years and then every 6 months for 2 years after that to make sure the cancer hasn't returned.  He is approaching his first 3 month mark and will go for scans on April 20, 2012.   To read more about Cooper you can go to his blog site: Cooperscourage.blogspot.com

Mimi

Mimi is 9 years old and was diagnosed November 28, 2011 with a myofibroblastic sarcoma located in her right cheek.  She's had to undergo 4 surgeries, 31 radiation treatments and inpatient chemotherapy treatments every 3 weeks for the past 6 months.  The bulk of her tumor was successfully resected March 1, 2012 but she has
been plagued with a post operative infection since then.  She is looking forward to her final chemo treatment scheduled to begin May 30, 2012.  She has been an inspiration to all that know her as she has dealt with these unpleasant treatments and is hopeful for a positive outcome.  So far her post-treatment scans have been clear!

Nik

Nikolas was diagnosed on Feb 8, 2012 with High Risk Neuroblastoma Stage III n-myc amplified. Nik is a beautiful 4 year old boy with a twin brother Zakary, a 12 yr old sister Samantha and 11 yr old brother named Trey. Nikolas's mother is a recent Hodgkin's Lymphoma survivor and is thankful for the support her family has received from Uncles, Aunts, cousins and friends through both cancer battles.  Nik just finished his stem cell transplant, radiation therapy, and is currently receiving antibody therapy.

Paige

Paige was diagnosed with Rhabdomyosarcoma (nasal/ pharynx) in February 2011 at the age of 2 1/2. She completed 28 sedated radiation treatments and also completed 42 chemo treatments, which she responded well to. She finished her chemo in December 2011. She just recently had her 3 month scans (PET, CT, and MRI) and it showed that her tumor was still dead. Her tumor can never be removed but with all the radiation and chemo she received it should stay dead scar tissue. Paige will continue to get scans to monitor her tumor.

Ty

Tyson was diagnosed in April 2011 at age 3 with a blood cancer called A.L.L. Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.  His daddy was stationed in Iraq at diagnosis and served five more months.  Now he is Tyson's number one buddy when Ty goes in for chemo and procedures.  Ty has had some bumps in the road with a low immune system and infections but he is responding well to treatment so far and has about 1 1/2 years left of chemo.  For more info on Ty you can read his blog HERE. 

Here are some statistics on Youth Cancer today:

Each year, approximately 13,500 parents will hear the words “your child has cancer.” Across all ages, ethnic groups and socio-economics, this disease remains the number one cause of death by disease in children. Despite major advances – from an overall survival rate of 10% just 40 years ago to nearly 80% today, for many rare cancers, the survival rate is much lower. Furthermore, the number of diagnosed cases annually has not declined in nearly 20 years.

~Every day, 36 children are diagnosed with cancer.

~One child out of five who is diagnosed with cancer dies.

~Children’s cancer affects all ethnic, gender and socio-economic groups.

~The average age of children diagnosed is six.
~More than 40,000 children undergo treatment for cancer each year.
~Three out of five who survive children’s cancer suffer late-effects, such as infertility, heart failure, and secondary cancers.
~There are approximately 350,000 adult survivors of children’s cancer in the United States.~That equates to 1 in 640 adults ages 18-45.

• One in 300 boys will develop cancer before the age of 20.
• One in 333 girls will develop cancer before the age of 20.
• The incidence of invasive pediatric cancers is up to 29% in the past 20 years.
• Pediatric cancer is the leading cause of death by disease among US children ages 1-14.
• In 2009, only 4% of the National Cancer Institute’s budget was used for pediatric funding.
• Young cancer patients often have a more advanced stage of cancer when first diagnosed.
• The average age of death for a child with cancer is 8.
• In 20 years the FDA has initially approved only one drug for any childhood cancer. Half of all chemotherapies used for children’s cancers are 25 years old.
• Physical and neurocognitive disabilities resulting from treatment may prevent childhood cancer survivors from fully participating in school, social activities and eventually work.
• Cancer kills more children than AIDs, asthma, diabetes, cystic fibrosis and congenital anomalies combined.

Source: PAC2 & CureSearch

check back soon

Check back soon! We are working on getting some more of our cancer buddies posted on here.  Thanks!