Miles is an extremely happy little boy and just about everything makes him laugh! He is very interested in sports, especially soccer and baseball. One of his greatest loves is going to car and motorcycle races with his sister and her husband. He LOVES Disneyland and most things Disney related. His Make-a-Wish is to go on a Disney Cruise.
In June 2015 we had taken a Disneyland trip and Miles was unusually tired and complaining that his legs were hurting. We figured this was reasonable as you walk about 7 miles a day in Disneyland. But then he started getting random fevers. Everyone told me that it was just growing pains, which made sense as he was probably the tallest 3 year old that I had ever met. But being the paranoid mom that I am, I started searching on the internet. All sites said that growing pains do not come with fevers and to contact a physician. I also ended up in chat rooms where parents were discussing the first symptoms of their children’s leukemia: leg pains and fevers. I made a doctor’s appointment immediately where I was also told he likely had growing pains and that he did not look like a “cancer kid”. I still demanded that blood work was done. That night at 7:30 we got the call that we needed to admit Miles to the hospital immediately. I started to cry on the phone because I knew what this was….but this did not make hearing the words “Miles has leukemia” any easier.
Miles has been in treatment for three years. This has taken a toll on his body. He suffers with weakness in his legs and neuropathy. He has been determined throughout his treatment to continue to participate in sports. He plays baseball and soccer. We make sure he doesn’t take himself to the point of exhaustion. His immune system is compromised causing him to be hospitalized whenever he gets a cold or flu bug. After his monthly chemotherapy treatments he is low energy and doesn’t feel well, but he usually is back to normal within a week or so. Overall, we have been amazed by his strength and determination to lead a normal life like his friends.
A few weeks into Miles’ treatment I got a really bad cold. Since Miles’ immune system was compromised, I went to the doctor to see if I could get some antibiotics. While I was there I had the doctor look at a lump on my breast that had been there for 18 months, but when it was checked 18 months earlier I was told I had dense breasts. She didn’t like the lump and sent me back to the breast clinic. Which led to a mammogram and an ultrasound, and a biopsy. The next day I got the call that confirmed that I had invasive ductal breast cancer that had spread to the lymph nodes. Later after surgery, I would find out it that the cancer had spread throughout my left breast and had spread to 18 lymph nodes; however I didn’t appear to have any distant metastasis.
At first it was absolutely devastating having two of us diagnosed at the same time. It changed everything about our lives, but especially our priorities. I think we are all much more grateful for our lives, our family, and our friends. I think there will always be that fear that our cancers will come back. I am hoping that Miles is young enough that many of these bad memories of his illness will be forgotten over time and that his scars will only remind him that he is strong and that he is a fighter.
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