September Warrior – Antonio
Our son Antonio is 17. He was born Feb 22,1997, 7 1/2 weeks early. He weighed 3lbs 13 oz and was a tough fighter. Never did we imagine we would have to fight again, Antonio was diagnosed with Ewing’s Sarcoma on December 21, 2012. What we thought was just a soccer injury turned out to be the worse nightmare any parent could imagine. He was doing 5k’s up until three weeks before he was diagnosed. He is the goalie for his high school team and for our township team. He complained about a few aches in the leg but we chalked it up to a soccer injury or growing pains. Never did we expect this.
After MRIs, CAT scans, PET Scans, bone scans and a biopsy, the verdict was in- Ewing’s Sarcoma. The primary tumor is in his left leg which has grown up to his thigh.The lymphnodes in his thigh, groin and behind the knee are also swollen. It is also in the right leg and it has spread to the lungs. The tumor in his left leg is almost the size of a pineapple. The spots on his lungs are small. The doctors at the Children’s Hospital of Pennsylvania (CHOP) believe we got there in the nick of time. We praise our pediatrician, Dr. Foreman, for knowing something wasn’t right and rushing us to CHOP. We are forever grateful to him. Like most people we never even heard of this cancer. How does a family absorb this and process this?
Antonio is my first born. He has a sister Rose who is 10. Antonio is a huge soccer player. He lives and breaths soccer. His favorite team is Real Madrid and of course his favorite player is Ronaldo, but he is also a huge womens US soccer fan and his favorite player is Hope Solo. Our son is full of life and he has a contagious smile. He loves music and is a drummer who has his own set. You can hear him banging away on them at all times of the day and as loud as down the street. He’s actually quite good too !! He’s a good boy and loves his family more then anything. He loves school and loves to be with his friends. Oh, and he loves video games. What teenager doesn’t? He is the light of our lives. He is loved by his family and by his friends. This will be a fight, but we will kick the beast in the butt. He may have cancer but cancer DOES NOT have him – NEVER!!
If you or a loved one has been impacted by sarcoma cancer, we encourage you to share your story. Sharing your story can be such an inspiration to others who are dealing with sarcoma in their own life and remind us all of the urgency to find better treatments in order to make an impact on the devastation that sarcoma cancer brings. Let your experiences help others become involved with raising awareness!