David loves soccer and football, he’s a huge Seattle Seahawks fan. He is also an animal lover; he will always snuggle a dog if he sees one. His favorite animal is a cheetah because, as he says, they love mice and run fast. He would always channel his inner cheetah when he played soccer. He’s a very outgoing boy and bright. He would be entering 5th grade right now.
David was diagnosed with B-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in June of 2022. David was losing a lot of unexplained weight and was pale, he would complain about how tired he was before it all happened, David was an energetic 10-year-old, he would play recreational soccer after school, and would never miss a game. Once he started saying he was too tired to go and would miss games we knew something was not right. He would come home from school and would sleep until the next day and wouldn’t eat.. David was also more prone to sickness before his diagnosis, he had a consistent ear infection for a few months that wouldn’t go away and complained about pain in his feet constantly that would limit his movements.
As a mother, you know when something is wrong with your child. For several months I was in and out of the ER and PCP trying to figure out what was wrong. David didn’t know how to describe what was going on with him but he didn’t feel right. I spoke to several doctors throughout the months and everyone told me it was normal and they were just growing pains, but I knew something else was going on. Finally, in June His Primary care doctor did bloodwork and called me the same day, she said I needed to go to Seattle Children’s Right away, and that he only needed a blood transfusion and it was nothing to worry about. I trusted her and headed to SCH right away. We went into the ER and informed them we were sent over from his primary doctor. After about 9 hours in the ER we found out the devastating news that he didn’t just need a blood transfusion but had Leukemia. The next 24 hours were very hard, David received 2 units of Blood because his counts were so low.
David has undergone several procedures following his diagnosis and is currently undergoing weekly lumbar procedures for this phase of chemotherapy. Our family is currently separated due to the fact that the cancer treatment is in Seattle and we live 3 hours away so we have had to relocate to continue his treatment. My husband has been working back at home while I am with both my son and his little sister in Seattle.
Our family has been greatly impacted since the sudden diagnosis and abrupt stop from work. We were unable to make rent and we were kicked out of our home. The landlord wanted us out as soon as possible. We currently do not have a home and I don’t have a job to help save for a deposit for anything right now either. David is also unable to play sports due to the risk of hurting his port area.
David is currently not in remission but is fighting hard to achieve remission and stay there, so he can go back to playing soccer. One day, he hopes to play for Paris Saint Germain like Messi #30.
Hope Session by Tiny Saguaro Photography