Jackson's third birthday is coming up in just a few weeks. He is a joyful, curious boy, and, the best part, cancer-free!! In fact, he is currently being weaned off of all of his medication, which had some difficult side effects such as aggression. But as his medicines are decreasing, we are seeing his true personality come out - the smiling, happy, laughing boy we remember from before his diagnosis.
We are so grateful to foundations and organizations who raise money for research and development. Our son benefited from just such efforts. Scottish-Rite in Atlanta is one of the few pediatric hospitals in the nation with an intraoperative MRI machine (iMRI). We firmly believe that this machine (along with the expertise of the surgeon, neurologist, and excellent staff, of course!) meant our sweet boy had to undergo only one neurosurgery to remove the tumor. In the past, it would sometimes take multiple surgeries to remove all of the tumor, since they don't want to take more brain tissue than absolutely necessary. Having a tool to precisely visualize the tumor made my son's and the surgeon's time in the OR as minimal as possible. This machine was developed and purchased through a foundation similar to St. Baldrick's, relying on volunteers and donations to develop and test equipment that make a very real and important difference in the OR and in patient outcomes.
Thanks for your efforts on behalf of children with tumors and cancer!!
