Matt's Story

I’ll never forget the success stories and how important they were to me, when our son, Matt was diagnosed with cancer. He was 3 years old and had what we thought was a really bad cough that wouldn’t go away. We finally had an X-ray that showed a mass in his chest that produced a sack of fluid that was resting on his lung, making it difficult for him to breathe. We started chemotherapy, then radiation, and within a month, there was no sign of the mass or the sack, and our beautiful boy was on his way toward recovery and a cure.

When your child is first diagnosed and you’re a parent walking the halls of the hospital or the oncology offices, it’s almost impossible not to be overwhelmed. Chances are you’re in shock. You don’t know what the treatment will be like. You don’t know if your child is going to survive. Thankfully, about that time, the incredible doctors and nurses start to take care of your child, and mom and dad too.

And then, you meet a family at the end of treatment, and a child who looks normal and healthy. You meet a child in for a check-up after being cancer- free for years. And you begin to hear, that at some point, cancer no longer has to consume your days, nights, and thoughts about the future. You begin to hear the success stories…the stories of children being cured.

One of my callings in life, following Matt’s cure, (he’s now cancer-free for 21 years!) is to share our success story. After that frightening diagnosis and guarded prognosis, he beat childhood cancer. He is wonderfully healthy, with few if any side effects from the treatment. Thankfully, the success stories far outnumber the sad endings to the journeys with childhood cancer. But we all know, that one child lost is one too many. So please, read these wonderful stories of wonderful children and families, and donate to CURE childhood cancer. That’s the way all of us can make sure, there are many more success stories to come.