September Warrior – Evan
Evan was diagnosed with osteosarcoma of the right humerus in December 2013. Evan was 4 at the time and has since had his 5th birthday. His Chemotherapy was started on December 26, 2013, with the standard Doxyrubicin, Cysplatin, and high dose Methotrexate. His treatment is being done at the Golisano Children’s Hospital in Fort Myers, Florida, and is part of the Lee Memorial Health System.
Evan had limb salvage surgery in April 2014 in Tampa, Florida, at the All Childrens hospital (part of John Hopkins) by a surgical team from Moffitt Cancer center in Tampa. The Humerus was removed from about 2 CM above the elbow to the upper part of the ball, and a cadaver bone was put in place with plates and screws. There was not enough natural bone by the elbow to place an expandable titanium device and the hope is that in a few years there will be enough natural bone to have the implant replace the temporary cadaver bone.
As of today, Evan has three chemotherapy treatments left before he has scans to see if he is disease free. The entire family awaits for this day to happen. Evan has tolerated the whole procedure as well as can be expected and has suffered the normal side effects that one does during chemotherapy. He has had bouts of nausea and mouth sores but has endured with a sense of humor and acceptance. He has been an inspiration to his family as well as his caregivers because he his always smiling and being a typical boy. His entire story is here: http://evanhamplejourney.blogspot.com/
Evan has a love of giraffes and takes his giraffes with him to the hospital where they adorn his Chemo pole.
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!