Max is a positive force. He is very logical and extremely intelligent. Throughout this whole ordeal he has never felt sorry for himself or even called attention to himself. He’s at that awkward age where the struggle needed to be private. Family and close friends know, as well as teachers who needed to be updated, however he never went public with anything. His upbeat, positive, quiet acceptance is an inspiration to me. He hasn’t let it slow him down or get in the way of his goals. He even went to school the day after diagnosis! His academic goals continue to come first and he is graduating in June 2018 as valedictorian of his class! So, it’s pretty obvious that academics mean a lot to him. He also likes to play the piano and composes music in his spare time. He loves computers and is the webmaster at his high school, as well as a technology tutor at the local library. Additionally, he ran cross-country and track all four years ( when he felt healthy enough). I may be biased, but he’s a pretty amazing kid.
In December of 2015, he was experiencing fatigue and large swollen lymph nodes. Max was diagnosed with Nodular Lymphocyte Predominant Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in 12/2015 after an excisional biopsy surgery. He is being treated at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital under a new “watch and wait” protocol for pediatric patients. He is seen every 3 months by his oncologist. He also had a total thyroidectomy in May 2016 due to suspected thyroid lymphoma and extreme growth of his thyroid gland and nodules. He has also had a spontaneous pneumothorax that might or might not be related to his condition. There was no clear reason for the pneumothorax. He has faced a lot of uncertainty in the last 2 years but has continued to thrive.
The ” watch and wait” or “watch and worry” as I like to call it, affects us every day. Not a day goes by that we don’t scan his neck for lumps or ask about his energy level. We are blessed beyond belief that he has not had to have any treatment at this point. As parents, we hope we chose the right path for our son.The nature of his disease has a high relapse rate and he’s old enough to be aware of that. The addition of losing his thyroid and the uncertainty prior to and following the thyroid surgery was also extremely challenging. Had the cancer moved to his thyroid? Was it back? Is the best treatment a total removal of his thyroid that would require daily medication? To sum it up, our family life is full of questions and uncertainty, but also hope, positivity, and prayer.
Hope session by Claire Toney Photography | Facebook | Instagram